Shujinko, The Fourth Member
by jido96
Summary: Team 7 had a fourth member: Ozuma Shujinko. Watch how his life changes as he learns what does it means being a ninja with Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi. (OC/Tenten)
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1: HERE COMES TEAM 7**

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

|Konohagakure no Sato, Shinobi Academy|

"Team 7: Uzumaki Naruto..." Iruka said, gaining the attention of the blonde boy. Today was the day ninja teams would be assigned and Naruto couldn't wait to see who were going to be his teammates. Now that he was a fully-fledged Genin, his path to become Hokage had just shortened. Just a little longer and that hat would be his for the taking!

"... Haruno Sakura..."

"Yatta! I'm paired with Sakura-chan!" Naruto cheered at the top of his lungs. Not only did he graduate, but he was also placed on the same team the girl of his dreams was. Things were looking particularly good for the Uzumaki boy.

However, the same thing couldn't be said for Sakura if the very disappointed look on her lowered face was anything to go by. 'I can't believe that I'm stuck in the same team with Naruto-baka!' she thought in distress.

"... Uchiha Sasuke..."

At the mention of the last Uchiha, the roles between Sakura and Naruto were exchanged.

'Darn it! Why did I have to be paired with the teme! I'm doomed.' Naruto thought frustrated.

'CHA! TRUE LOVE WINS!' Inner Sakura shouted while pumping her fists. If being in the same team as her Sasuke-kun meant that she would have to deal with Naruto, she was willing to do it.

Sasuke said nothing and didn't even bother to acknowledge the existence of the other two. He just kept brooding like he usually did, seemingly unaware of the rest of the world. Little did he know that his attitude was going to change rather sooner than later.

"... and Ozuma Shujinko."

Almost everyone in the class, Sasuke included, glanced at the boy sitting with two other students on the other side of the room. The boy in question had medium-long brown hair, slightly tanned skin and a pair of golden eyes on his face. He wore an open, black, long-sleeved jacket with a white t-shirt underneath. He also had dark brown pants and blue shinobi boots. The boy was chatting with some of his friends when he was announced as the fourth member of team 7, which took him by surprise but his smile showed that he seemed to be rather excited about the news.

If one had to use one word to describe the golden-eyed boy, it would probably be 'likable'. Shujinko was known for his cordiality and his ability to make friends, as well as his prowess as a shinobi. He was actually tied with Sasuke with the 'Rookie of the Year' tittle, though Sasuke ended up receiving the tittle because of his slightly betters theoretical grades. Apart from that, the two of them were pretty much equal in other aspects regarding their ninja skills. However, unlike Sasuke, Shujinko was amicable, had a sense of humor and lacked arrogance. To top it all up, he was good-looking in his own right, or at least that was what the females students said to one another.

This didn't mean that everyone liked the guy. In fact, there were a few students that thought of him as a lucky guy that everything came to him effortless, but most of them were just jealous. In reality, Shujinko was very dedicated to his career and spent almost all of his time either training or reading ninja-oriented books, such as survival guides and jutsu theories. It's not like he was a training maniac, he simply understood the risks and expectations of his line of work, something that a lot of Sasuke's fangirls didn't seem to understand or care for that matter. All they seemed to care about was winning the affection of their beloved Sasuke-kun, something that unnerved him to no end.

Speaking of which, Sasuke's sub consciousness was showing him the first day he met Shujinko.

 _|Flashback|_

 _A nine-year old Sasuke was currently in a random training ground, practicing his kunai throwing and avoiding the horde of annoying fangirls that had chased him through the village. Those stupid girls didn't seem to understand that he wanted to be alone, that he wanted to train in peace so he could finally get strong enough to kill Him. Uchiha Itachi. His brother. The murderer of his clan._

 _As he threw another kunai from his pouch, he watched how the target would get hit dead-center just like the last time. Most of the kids of his class would be overjoyed by having such results, but he wasn't. He was top of the class and he knew it, but that meant that he had no one to measure himself against. All the others boys and girls were simply too weak to practice with. The only ones who would improve would be them, not him. What good would that be?_

 _"Hey there, can I join you?"_

 _Sasuke turned around to see the source of the voice. While he was distracted by his own thoughts, a boy his age appeared and was now standing close to him. The boy had brown hair, gold eyes and was wearing a plain white t-shirt, gray shorts that reached a little past his knees and blue shinobi boots. He had a smile on his face that seemed to pour happiness and good vibes._

 _"Who are you?" Sasuke asked with little interest and somewhat annoyed._

 _"My name is Ozuma Shujinko. You're Uchiha Sasuke, right? We're in the same class in the Academy. I saw you practicing and I was wondering if I could join you. I also need a little help with my kunai technique." the boy now identified as Shujinko said._

 _The Uchiha narrowed his eyes. He didn't recall seeing him in class before. But then again, he rarely payed attention to any of his classmates. "I don't need help with my kunai technique and I train alone. Go find another place." he said before returning his gaze to the wooden dummy that was his target._

 _Shujinko was a little taken back by his words. He'd seen him in class before and he knew he rarely talked to anybody, but he didn't know he was so mean. However, Ozuma Shujinko was not one to be dissuaded so easily. "Oh, come on! Then why don't we have a spar? I'll be fun!"_

 _'He wants to have a spar with me? Doesn't he know I'm the top student? He doesn't looks like much either." Sasuke thought before replying. "No."_

 _"You're no fun!" Shujinko said with a childish pout. Then his mouth formed a mischievous grin. "Okay, how about this? We have a little spar and if you win I'll never ever bother you again!"_

 _That seemed to interest the young Uchiha, or at least it got him to turn around and face Shujinko once again. If anything, he could take him out quickly and hope that he would keep his promise of leaving him alone. He considered asking what he would want if he won, but that was a ridiculous idea. Sasuke was going to win, he just had to decide how long would the fight last. "Fine."_

 _Shujinko grinned. "Alright, that's more like it!" he said as he went into the typical Taijutsu stance that was taught at the Academy, with Sasuke doing the same. "Ready?"_

 _"Hn."_

 _"Okay... Go!" Shujinko yelled as he started running towards his opponent with his right hand back, indicating that he was planning to go for a direct hit._

 _When he was close enough, Shujinko went for the punch. Sasuke saw this coming a mile away and effortlessly raised his arm to block the punch. What he didn't saw coming a mile away however, was Shujinko pulling back his fist in the middle of the hook and instead going for a left kick. Sasuke was a little surprised by the change but he didn't show it, stepping out of the kick in the last moment. Realizing that his left leg was still yet to touch the ground, Sasuke ducked and attempted to sweep Shujinko's right leg. Shujinko jumped back and went for a four-hit combo with both his hands. Sasuke dodged every punch thrown at him and quickly went for a spinning wheel kick, but missed as Shujinko lowered his head just in time._

 _Sasuke was not done yet. As soon as he finished his attempt to kick Shujinko's face, he immediately raised his hand and punched his opponent's left cheek. Shujinko, who was just lifting his head up after avoiding the kick, didn't had enough time to block the incoming punch and ended up receiving a fist to the face. Now Sasuke smelled the victory, but before he could end the fight Shujinko stepped aside and kicked Sasuke's left thigh with a low kick. The Uchiha grunted in pain, and even more when Shujinko seized an opportunity and punched Sasuke in both his stomach and near his collar bone. Feeling lucky, the brunet went for a third hit, but Sasuke evaded it and thrusted his knee deep in Shujinko's gut. Sasuke took advantage of this and jumped back to distance himself from his opponent._

 _This went on for a couple of more minutes. Dodging, punching, kicking, evading, jumping, etc. Sasuke didn't want to admit it, but the boy he was facing was good, quite good actually. He had a solid stance, was fast in his attacks and defending, rarely left out any spot he could take advantage of and had a lot of energy. To top it all up, he had some unpredictable moves that caught him off-guard in more than one occasion. Without either of them noticing, the little sparring match was now over an hour long. They kept going at it until neither of them could move because of the pain and the fatigue they were experiencing. Blood, bruises and scratches were all over their bodies._

 _"How about... we... call it a... tie?" Shujinko suggested as he tried to catch his breath._

 _The Uchiha didn't respond as he was also breathing hard. He was honestly surprised by the kid's abilities and was wondering how did Shujinko, the classmate that he had ignored for so long, was able to fight him like an equal. Sure he didn't won, but he didn't lose either. That confused and intrigued him to no end. "How?"_

 _"How what?" Shujinko asked back in confusion._

 _"How did you kept up with me? I am the best in the class and no one should be able to do that. But you did. How?" Sasuke asked once he had enough air._

 _Smiling at Sasuke's interest, Shujinko explained. "Well I train a lot. Most of my time I spend it getting better and learning new things. I want to be the strongest ninja I can be."_

 _And with that, the two of them parted away. Shujinko felt happy and satisfied to know that he could go toe-to-toe with the top student. That could only mean that he was growing stronger by the day and he would continue to do so. Sasuke, on the other hand, felt something he hadn't experienced since the day his clan was massacred: Excitement. He had finally found someone who he could measure himself against, someone who might help him get stronger. Granted, he didn't particularly like Shujinko's happy and innocent demeanor, but he would put up with it as long as he could put up a fight against him._

 _And that was the beginning of the rivalry between the top students of the class._

 _|Flashback ends|_

Since that day, both Shujinko and Sasuke would spar against each other at least once a week. Shujinko was no natural prodigy, but he was extremely dedicated and hard-working, always trying to find his weaknesses so he could improve and exploiting his strengths. Not only was he strong, but he was ingenious as well. In fact, when he discovered Shikamaru's passion for Shogi, he started playing with him so he could improve his strategies. It was only after their first game of Shogi when Shujinko found out just how smart the Nara heir actually was. Kami, that boy was a genius! A genius too lazy to do anything other than watch the clouds in the sky. Still, the two of them bonded through Shogi and, by instance, Shujinko met and befriended Akimichi Chouji. Even if Shikamaru never lost a game against Shujinko, he enjoyed all of their games together. The golden-eyed boy was smart for his age and was even able to force Shikamaru to change his strategy in order to win, occasionally making him mutter something about 'troublesome friends and their troublesome strategies'. Shujinko just laughed at him.

Back at the present, people were whispering about the members of Team 7.

"A four-man team?"

"Has that ever happened before?"

"Why would they put Sasuke and Shujinko on the same team? They're top of the class!"

"I can't believe Sakura got placed in the same team as Sasuke-kun and Shujinko-kun! No one should be that lucky!"

"Well, they do have Naruto on their team. The two top students should be balanced with the dead-last, right?"

That last commentary made Shujinko frown in annoyance. He was aware that Naruto wasn't exactly a genius... Okay, the boy was a loud goofball. But at the same time, he respected his efforts of being a ninja. Shujinko had to admit that, if the roles were reversed between him and Naruto, he would've probably given up a long time ago. Naruto, despite all of his flaws and his lack of skills, had confidence and determination in spades. Besides, his pranks did make Shujinko laugh every once in a while.

With Naruto, the news of having Shujinko as a teammate surprised him quite a lot. He didn't knew the guy that much and (not that he would ever say it out loud) he was somewhat envious of his talent as a shinobi and the recognition he had among his peers. His classmates would always say how Shujinko was the only one in the class that could be considered as an equal to the teme. But even if he tried to, he couldn't bring himself to hate him or anything like that. Unlike Sasuke, Shujinko was never rude and never treated people like they were below him. In fact, in the few occasions that Naruto and Shujinko had exchanged words, Shujinko had never disrespected him or called him dead-last like the rest of the class did. All in all, Naruto felt glad that he had another teammate besides Sakura that he liked. Maybe the two of them could even become friends!

Sakura felt somewhat similar to Naruto. While the two of them never really had a conversation per se, Sakura noticed that Shujinko seemed to be friendly and not full of himself, something that could be expected from one of the classes top student. But her obsession with Sasuke blinded her to the point of not bothering to know him. She didn't think badly of him, she just didn't know the guy. At least for now.

Finally, Sasuke's reaction was that of slight surprise and interest. He had no business with Sakura or Naruto, but Shujinko was to this day the only one he could consider a worthy rival. They still had their spars once every week and they would make small conversation every now and then. Sasuke wouldn't call him a friend. After all, Uchiha Sasuke had no friends. But he did consider Shujinko to be someone closer to him than any of the class. 'Those two are only going to slow me down.' Sasuke thought in despair as he glanced at Sakura and Naruto. Then his gaze met Shujinko. 'But I need him on my team if I want to get stronger. Maybe he can even drill some sense into the dobe's head or at least get him out of my way.'

"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto's loud voice boomed through the class. "Why do I have to be on the same team as that teme?"

Shujinko had to cover his ears. He knew Naruto wasn't a bad guy, but Kami, he could be as loud as Sasuke's fangirls when he wanted to.

To his credit, Iruka's twitching eye was fairly well dissimulated. "That's because Sasuke had the best grades of all the graduating students. You, Naruto, had the worst scores. To create a balanced team, we put the best student with the worst."

"But then why did they pair Shujinko-kun with Sasuke-kun as well? Shujinko-kun had the second best graduating grades!" a random girl asked.

"Well, that would be because we had a total of 28 students at the end of the year. We couldn't let one student alone, so we were obligated to create a team of four members. Hokage-sama decided that placing Shujinko with Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke was the best thing to do." Iruka explained.

"Hmpf, just make sure you don't get in my way, dobe." who else but Sasuke said.

"WHAT WAS THAT, TEME!"

"Don't insult Sasuke-kun, Naruto-baka!"

Shujinko sighed. 'This is gonna be, as Shikamaru would put it, troublesome.'

Iruka coughed. "After lunch, you'll meet your new Jounin-senseis. Until then, the class is dismissed."

And with that said, everyone left the room. Sakura and several other girls went outside looking for Sasuke to have lunch together, Sasuke went to hide himself from his horde of screeching fangirls and Naruto went to get some of his holy ramen. With none of his new teammates to spent some 'getting-to-know-each-other' time, Shujinko went to his favorite lunch spot in all of Konohagakure no Sato: The glorious 'Yoi Sakana's sushi bar'.

For Shujinko, sushi was to him what ramen was for Naruto. Well, maybe not THAT important, but it was definitely his favorite food. The stand wasn't luxurious by any means, but it was wide and comfortable and the prices were good. And the food... the food was incredible. If anyone wanted to get on Shujinko's good side, all they had to do was treat him with sushi and they were good to go.

After having a delicious lunch at Yoi Sakana's, Shujinko went back to the classroom where Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were waiting for their Jounin-sensei. Shujinko was actually a bit late and he had hoped that their new sensei would forgive him this time for his tardiness. After all, they were Genin now and it was expected of him to be punctual just like his sensei surely was.

Oh, how cute and naive.

(2 hours later)

"He's late!" Naruto yelled in frustration as he kept looking outside to see if their new sensei was coming.

Now, Shujinko considered himself to be fairly patient. He had to, as it was expected of ninjas. Brash decisions and thoughtless actions often got shinobi killed, or so Shujinko had read once in one of those survival guides he liked to read so much. Knowing when to strike and knowing when to wait was something priceless in the ninja world.

But their new sensei was pushing it BIG TIME. Seriously, what kind of sensei arrives two hours late to his first meeting with his new Genin team?

As it was expected, Sasuke was on one side of the room brooding and Sakura was trying to make some conversation with her one-sided crush while failing phenomenally. Shujinko was reading a scroll about jutsu and chakra theories. He wanted to make conversation with at least one of his new teammates, but that was no easy task. Sasuke rarely ever talked with him and he only spoke what was necessary, Sakura was too busy trying to get her Sasuke-kun's attention to actually care for anything else and Naruto was displaying his rather childish antics thanks to the Jounin being absurdly late. Not exactly the best mood for conversation.

"Naruto, sit down already!" Sakura exclaimed as Naruto was still waiting by the door.

"I don't want to! How come our sensei is the only one late? The other teams already met their senseis and took off to some adventure or something, and Iruka-sensei is gone too!"

Sakura sighed. "We know, ok?" she said. The next thing she saw, Naruto was on a chair placing an eraser on the top of the door, giggling mischievously while he did so. "Naruto!"

Naruto jumped off the chair. "That's what he gets for getting late!"

"You're asking for trouble. You know that, right?" Sakura scolded him. But on the inside, Inner-Sakura was cheering. 'CHA! I LOVE THIS!'

For the first time since they started waiting, Sasuke raised his voice. "Dobe, our sensei is a Jounin, an elite ninja. Do you really think he'll fall for such a simple trick?"

Needless to say, Sakura agreed with him wholeheartedly. "Yeah, Sasuke-kun is right! You're so clueless, baka!"

"(Sigh) Hey guys, do you think we could all get along for just a couple of minutes?" Shujinko asked with a tired voice. He could understand if there was no conversation going around, but the constant arguments really made him weary.

Whatever answer Shujinko was going to receive, it was interrupted by the sound of an opening door. Everyone looked at the entrance to see how things were going to develop.

POOF

As soon as the door opened, the eraser fell right on top of the Jounin's head. Said Jounin looked just like every Chunin/Jounin of the village except for a few things. One would be the cloth mask covering half of his face, his Konoha headband covering his left eye and his spiky silver hair. He had a lazy aura around him as he picked up the eraser from the ground

"Hahahahahaha! He fell for it, he totally fell for it!" Naruto yelled in ecstasy.

"I'm so sorry, sensei! I told him not to do it, but he wouldn't listen! I would never do anything like that." Sakura apologized. However, Inner-Sakura had another thing to say. 'CHA! PERFECT SHOT!'

Sasuke said nothing but on the inside he was frowning. 'He actually fell for that cheap trick? Is this guy really a Jounin?'

'Well, he sort of had it coming. After all, he was late for 2 hours.' Shujinko thought with a shrug.

"Hmmm, how can I put this?" the silver-haired man lazily said as he rubbed his chin. "My first impression of this team is... You're a bunch of idiots."

Everyone sweat-dropped at the blunt statement.

"Meet me at the roof top in five minutes. Ja ne." and with that, the man poofed out of their sight.

|Academy's roof top|

"Alright..." the Jounin started to say, "... why don't you introduce yourselves? One at a time."

"Introduce ourselves? Well, what are we supposed to say?" Sakura asked.

"Things you like, things you hate, dreams for the future, hobbies, things like that."

Naruto still wasn't so sure about the whole 'introduction' thing. "Why don't you go first, sensei? Tell us about yourself so we can see how we should do it."

"Me? I'm Hatake Kakashi. The things I like and the things I hate?... I don't feel like telling you that. My dreams for the future?... I never really thought about it. And as for my hobbies... I have lots of hobbies."

...

"So... Is there anything you would like to tell us about yourself other than your name, sensei?" Shujinko asked with a raised eyebrow at the now identified Hatake Kakashi.

The man shrugged. "Not particularly. And now that you know what you are supposed to do, introduce yourselves. You first, blondie."

"Yosh! I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I like instant cup ramen and I really like the ramen Iruka-sensei treats me at Ichiraku's. But I really hate the three minutes I have to wait when I pour the hot water into the cup. My hobbies are collecting new types of ramen and comparing them. And my dream for the future is to be the greatest Hokage! That way the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like somebody important, believe it!" Naruto said with fierce determination.

Shujinko was listening to his teammate and couldn't help but wonder what he meant at the end. 'Stop disrespecting him? What's that about? Sure they used to make fun of him in class, but the whole village? I don't get it.'

'Well, he has grown up in a very interesting way.' Kakashi thought. "I see. You're next, pinkie."

Sakura's eyebrow twitched at the nickname but let it go. "My name is Haruno Sakura. What I like... I mean the person I like is... (girly squeal as she looks at Sasuke)... My hobbies are... My dream for the future is... (looks at Sasuke and starts squealing again)."

"And what do you hate?"

"... Naruto!" Sakura said out loud. Naruto gasped and started sulking with a few tears running down his cheeks.

'Wow, she barely told us more than Kakashi-sensei.' Shujinko thought with a deadpan expression.

Kakashi let out a small sigh. 'Girls her age are more interested in boys rather than ninja training.' he thought. "Very well. Your turn, darkie."

Sasuke glared to his teacher before talking. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There are many things I dislike, and I don't particularly like anything." he started to say. Sakura looked at her feet in disappointment, asking herself when will the time come that her Sasuke-kun would admit his undying love for her. "What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan, and kill a certain someone."

The whole atmosphere went dead silent after Sasuke said those words.

'I hope he doesn't mean me.' Naruto thought warily.

'Sasuke-kun is so cool!' Sakura thought with admiration.

'As I expected.' Kakashi almost said, but stopped his tongue right on time. Shujinko was probably the most shocked out of the four. He had 'known' Sasuke since nine, and in all of that time he had never said such a thing to him. Of course, he knew Sasuke wanted to get stronger every day, very much like he did. But Shujinko never knew WHY he wanted to get stronger. The first day they met, Shujinko made it very clear that he wanted to get stronger just for the sake of being stronger and be recognized in all of the Elemental Countries. Sasuke, on the other hand, never said a word about his reasons and Shujinko had never bothered to ask him.

The Jounin looked at his fourth student. "Ok, last but not least, brownie."

'Brownie? Is that the best you can come up with?' Shujinko thought slightly offended. "My name is Ozuma Shujinko. I like training, learning new things, meeting new people, animals and the sushi from Yoi Sakana's. I hate arrogant, lying and overly-loud people in general. My hobbies are training, reading and creating new jutsus. My dream for the future is to be the greatest ninja I can be and hopefully live a very fulfilling life. Yeah, I think that's it."

Kakashi looked at the golden-eyed youth with interest. 'If his Academy expedient is accurate, then this one shouldn't give me much trouble. He's talented and has the right mindset to achieve his goals. I guess I'll see that tomorrow.' "Good. Each one of you is unique and you have your own ideas. We'll have our first mission tomorrow."

Naruto immediately perked up. "What mission are we going to handle, Kakashi-sensei?"

"It's a task that the five of us will do together. A survival exercise." the Hatake stated.

Sakura frowned. "Huh? I thought we were supposed to have an actual mission, not a practice exercise. We already did that stuff at the Academy, that's how we got here."

"Yeah! And what kind of exercise is it then?" Naruto asked.

To everyone's surprise, Kakashi chuckled for a minute. "Well, if I tell you the answer, you're not going to like it." he then made a pause before going serious. "Out of the 28 students that graduated this year, only nine or ten of them actually become Genin. The others will be weeded out and sent back to the Academy. In other words, this is a pass-or-fail test, and the chance that you'll fail is at least 66%." Kakashi said, making Sakura and Naruto gasp in surprise. Shujinko and Sasuke stiffened at his words. "See? I told you you wouldn't like it."

"That's crazy! We worked our asses off to get here! What was that graduation test anyway?" Naruto exclaimed.

"Oh, that? That was just to select the candidates who might become Genin... or not." Kakashi responded calmly as ever. "In any case, be at the entrance of the training ground number 3 at 5:00 A.M. sharp. Don't forget to bring your ninja gear. Oh, and I suggest that you all skip breakfast, otherwise you'll puke." and with that said, the cyclops disappeared, leaving his potential students to their thoughts.

'I am so not gonna be weeded out! I'm going to pass this test one way or another, believe it!'

'If I fail this test tomorrow, then I'll be separated from Sasuke-kun! This is a trial of love!'

'...'

'5:00 A.M.? Why does it have to be so early?'

Since no one spoke a word, Shujinko decided to turn in for the rest of the day and go home to pack his things for tomorrow. "Alright, I'm heading home. See you guys tomorrow!"

"Huh? Oh, bye Shujinko." Sakura said, still a little (a little too much) distracted by Sasuke.

"Bye Shujinko! See ya tomorrow!" Naruto yelled with a foxy grin. Shujinko smiled and nodded his head.

The young Uchiha merely grunted in response.

With all of his teammates saying their goodbyes, Shujinko turned around and went home to tell both of his parents the news. Despite himself, Shujinko couldn't help but feel excited about his new life as a Genin. This was his very start as an official ninja of Konohagakure no Sato, and he was determined to make a name for himself.

Shujinko smiled, thinking about the things to come.

There you have it, the first chapter of 'Shujinko, The Fourth Member'. After watching a couple of fanfics with Oc's in them, I wanted to give it a shot as well. Like it? Hate it? Do you have any recommendations? Feel free to PM me or leave a review. I'm aware that there might be some grammar mistakes around (English is not my first language), and if you notice one please tell me so I can fix them right away. I'll also try to make future chapters longer; this was just to give you a taste of the story.

Ja ne!


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO: THE BELL TEST**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

* * *

|4:00 A.M.|

RIIIIIIIIING 'TAP'

Shujinko woke up and, very much against his will, got out of bed with nothing to wear except a white t-shirt and boxers. Scratching the back of his head, he made his way to the kitchen and was about to make some toast when he remembered what Kakashi-sensei (or maybe just Kakashi, depending on how the survival exercised went) told them yesterday:

 _"... Don't forget to bring your ninja gear. Oh, and I suggest that you all skip breakfast, otherwise you'll puke..."_

'Man, is this survival exercise that tough?' Shujinko couldn't help but think. 'But, if the whole idea of the exercise is to survive, then why should I go out there without breakfast? I mean sure, I could puke if I eat too much but if I don't eat a thing I won't be anywhere near my best. Mmhhh, what to do, what to do...'

In the end, Shujinko decided to have breakfast but not too much. Just some tea and some apples would have to do. Granted, it wasn't the best breakfast ever, but hey, it was way better than starving. He also decided to bring some apples to his new teammates in case they didn't have anything for breakfast. If they were going to do an exercise as a team, they might as well do it right.

After taking a short shower, Shujinko dressed himself with his usual outfit and started packing his ninja tools. The golden-eyed boy was always careful with his weapons, keeping them sharp and in their respective pouches. He also had to make sure to keep them out of his younger sister's reach. Ozuma Nanami, the seven year-old sister of Shujinko, was just starting the Academy and she practically adored her older brother. In fact, there were numerous occasions when Nanami would steal (or borrow without permission as she called it) several kunais from Shujinko's pouch and then throw them at a tree in an attempt to imitate her older brother. Shujinko had to step in and told her that, while it was good to be enthusiastic, she needed to learn how to be patient and wait until the right time to practice.

Speaking about ninja tools, Shujinko's favorites were the exploding tags and the Fuma Shuriken, although the firsts were hard to come by since they were expensive and the later were pretty much off-limits to Academy students. In fact, the only times Shujinko had used one was when he was being under the supervision of a Chunin teacher on breaks or after Academy hours. Still, Shujinko was salivating over them back then and he was salivating over them now. And because he was now a Genin (if he passed the survival exercise), he now had full access to shinobi tools sold in shops. He made a mental note to save money in order to buy one of those babes.

Placing his headband on his forehead tightly and attaching his pouch full of shurikens, kunais and a set of five exploding tags to the back of his waist, Shujinko was ready to go. Grabbing his small handbag full of apples, the brown-haired boy left his house and started walking towards the training grounds.

* * *

|Training grounds number 3|

When Shujinko arrived at the designated training ground, he saw his team had already arrived, and the three of them looked exhausted. Naruto and Sakura were yawning their mouths off and Sasuke was also tired although he tried not to show it.

"Hey guys."

"Hey ,Shujinko. Good morning... or night... or whatever this is." Naruto replied before letting out another yawn.

Shujinko turned to face Sasuke. "Morning to you too, Sasuke."

"Hnh."

'Typical.' Shujinko rolled his eyes. "And good morning to you too, Sakura."

"Good (yawn) morning, Shujinko."

As he looked around the training grounds, Shujinko noticed that their sensei was nowhere to be seen. "Hey, where's Kakashi-sensei?" he asked Sakura.

"He's not here yet. And I have a feeling he's not going to be here anytime soon."

Shujinko shrugged. "Oh well, as long as he doesn't come as late as the last time, we should be good."

Oh, if only he knew.

|4 hours later|

It was official. Hatake Kakashi was the tardiest man in all of Konohagakure. He was late by four hours, four freaking hours! Just what kind of sensei was he?

Shujinko spent the last three hours sleeping. Seriously, he had been deprived of precious sleeping hours and his sensei had the audacity to be late? Yeah well he was not about to wait four hours standing, so he used his handbag full of apples as a pillow and got himself lost in the beauty and magnificence of sleeping. Pure, marvelous, blissful sleeping. Naruto joined him as well a couple of minutes later while Sakura and Sasuke kept waiting on their feet for their sensei. Sakura was particularly happy that her two other teammates were asleep because that meant that she was able to have some private time with her Sasuke-kun.

Her 'Sasuke-kun' wasn't exactly happy about the fact that he had to put up with Sakura for four hours straight, but his pride wouldn't allow him to fall asleep like Shujinko and Naruto. Besides, he wasn't sure about what Sakura might try to do to him once he was sleeping. After all, his fangirls were as crazy as they were weak and annoying. Much to his pleasure, Sakura stopped talking to him after she figured out that having an actual conversation with a tired Uchiha Sasuke was downright impossible.

"Damn, that was nice." Shujinko commented lazily as he started to wake up from his slumber. "Wait, are you telling me Kakashi-sensei still hasn't arrived?"

"What does it looks like?" Sasuke replied rudely.

"It was a rhetorical question, genius."

"Get lost."

"Oh yes, Sasuke-sama!" Shujinko sarcastically answered with a fake bow. "I will do as you command me, Sasuke-sama!"

Naruto, who was awake by now, started rolling on the ground in laughter. Sasuke was about to retort, but then a certain silver-haired man entered the scene.

"Good morning everyone. Ready for your first day?"

"YOU'RE LATE!" both Naruto and Sakura screeched. Both Shujinko and Sasuke winced at the booming voices. Did their teammates have to be so loud?

"Now see here, a black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way." Kakashi excused himself with an eye-smile. Ignoring the hateful glares from the four Genins, Kakashi cleared his throat. "Let's get started. This alarm here is set for noon. Your assignment is very simple. You just have to take these bells from me." the Hatake explained as his hand was holding three bells. "That's all there is to it. If you don't get one by noon, you won't get lunch. You will be tied to those posts and watch me eat my lunch in front of you."

'So that's why.' Sasuke thought with annoyance.

Sakura felt just as despaired. 'He wanted us not to eat breakfast so he could make it harder for us!'

The word lunch rang a bell (no pun intended) inside Shujinko's head. "Oh, I almost forgot." he said as he reached into his handbag and took some apples out of it. "I had some apples for breakfast. I brought you guys some, if you want. Sasuke, I know you like tomatoes so I also brought you some."

The statement shocked his three teammates. None of them even thought about actually having breakfast, let alone bring some of it to anyone. Naruto and Sakura were more than happy to take some, practically yelling their thanks to their golden-eyed savior. Sasuke hesitated, but in the end took one tomato. Muttering an almost inaudible 'thank you', the young Uchiha started eating his favorite fruit.

Kakashi narrowed his only visible eye. "Shujinko, why did you eat breakfast when I specifically told you not to?"

"Because, Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko started to say. "If I was to battle a Jounin such as yourself, I rather do it with my stomach full. I think it's better to puke in the middle of a fight than to black out in one. And besides, you didn't tell us not to have breakfast. You merely suggested that we shouldn't have breakfast. There's a difference."

The Jounin nodded. "I see." he said curtly. On the inside, Kakashi was smiling in satisfaction. Not only did the boy thought like an actual ninja, but he also displayed a certain sense of teamwork by offering his teammates something to eat. From all of the naive Genins he had tested before, he was the first to do that. At least he was showing promise on discovering the actual meaning of his test.

It was in that moment when Sakura noticed something. "But wait, there are only three bells. How are we supposed to get one bell each if there are four of us?"

"Because that way, at least one of you will be tied to a post and ultimately disqualified for failing the mission. That one gets back to the Academy, but then again, all four of you could be sent back there. You can use any weapon you like: shurikens, kunai, you name it. If you are not prepared to kill me, then you will not be able to take a bell from me."

"Those weapons are too dangerous, sensei!" Sakura said worriedly.

Shujinko rolled his eyes. If what the Academy taught him was true, then that man was more than capable of handling shurikens and kunais. Sakura was definitely intelligent, but that intelligence came only from books and not training or experience. She was awarded as the 'Kunoichi of the Year', but if you asked Shujinko, that award was overrated. It's not that being smart was useless, but you also needed to be physically strong to endure the ninja life ahead of you. Take Sasuke for example. He was awarded as the 'Rookie of the Year' because he scored the best in both the practical and theoretical tests. In Shujinko's eyes, that was how a shinobi should be; strong and smart.

While Shujinko was pondering about this, Naruto was laughing. "Especially since you couldn't dodge that eraser!"

The silver-haired Jounin shrugged. "Class clowns are usually the weakest links. Ignore the ones with the lowest scores, for they are probably losers." That statement wounded Naruto's pride, but Kakashi payed him no attention whatsoever. "When I say start, you can all be-"

Kakashi was interrupted by an angry roar that came out of Naruto's mouth. The blonde Genin grabbed a kunai and attempted to strike him. 'Attempted' being the key word, since in a matter of seconds, Kakashi neutralized Naruto by stopping his hand and placing it in the back of his head. Before Naruto knew it, his very own hand was threatening his life.

"Don't be in such a hurry. I didn't say start yet."

'That was fast.' Shujinko thought impressed.

Sakura was among the same lines. 'I couldn't even see him!'

Although he tried not to show it, Sasuke was also slightly unnerved by the Jounin's display. 'So, this is what a Jounin is like.'

"You came with the full intention of destroying me. Mmhhh, how can I say this?" Kakashi trailed off before giving his cute little potential students an easy eye-smile. "I'm actually starting to like you guys. Now, if you four are ready, then... Go!"

And with that, the four Genins jumped out of Kakashi's sight. Sakura was hiding in some bushes while Sasuke was up in a tree. Meanwhile, Shujinko was hiding behind a tree while Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

"A ninja must learn how to conceal their movements and hide effectively." Kakashi said out loud. The four youths were practically invisible to the untrained eye. 'Well, they understand that much. They are hiding well.' he thought. Of course, he could already tell where three of his students where. He wasn't a Jounin and an ex-ANBU for nothing. 'Now, where is Naruto? Wait, huh?'

"You and me, right now, fair and square!" Naruto loudly challenged. He made no attempts whatsoever to hide; the boy was literally in front of him.

'Naruto, don't be an idiot!' Shujinko screamed inside his head. One thing he didn't like about Naruto was his brash and defiant nature. He would go head-to-head with anyone while not knowing anything about his opponent. That kind of attitude could get him killed one day.

'Hn, stupid dobe.' Sasuke thought.

"You know, compared to the others you are a little... weird." the Hatake said with a deadpan expression.

"The only thing weird here is your haircut!" Naruto shot back as he charged against the Jounin. However, he stopped when he saw Kakashi grabbing something from his back pouch.

"Shinobi battle techniques. Lesson number one: Taijutsu."

The Kyubi Jinchuriki narrowed his eyes. 'Taijutsu? That means hand-to-hand combat! Then why is he going to grab a weapon?'

Shujinko learned that shinobi should always expect the unexpected, but he would've never expected Kakashi to pull out what he pulled out of his pouch.

In his hand, there was no weapon but a book.

And not just any book.

It was Icha-Icha Paradise, the number one book for literature perverts from all of the Elemental Countries.

... Wow...

"What's wrong? Weren't you going to attack me?" the one-eyed Jounin asked as he read his orange little book.

"But... I mean... Why are you reading that book?" Naruto asked back in clear confusion.

"Why? Well to find out what happens in the story of course. Don't let it bother you. With your weak attacks it doesn't really matters if I'm reading or whatever."

Naruto growled and clenched his fists. If there was something that Naruto absolutely loathed was to be ignored or underestimated. That silver-haired douchebag had just done those two things. "I'm going to freaking pummel you!" he shouted as he tried to punch the man. Kakashi stopped the punch with one hand while still reading his book, seemingly unaware that Naruto was attacking him. The blonde Genin tried to kick him, but the Jounin simply ducked. Out of frustration, Naruto charged against Kakashi one more time. "You're mine!"

When Naruto finished his punch, he noticed two things. First, he had struck nothing but thin air. Second, Kakashi-sensei was nowhere to be seen.

"Don't let your enemy get behind you all the time." a voice whispered behind his back.

It was then Naruto realized Kakashi-sensei was behind him.

Sakura, who had stayed out of the fight, recognized the hand sign Kakashi was performing. 'That's the tiger hand sign! He could destroy Naruto with that!'

'That hand sign is for a Katon jutsu. He's not just playing with the dobe, he's going to demolish him.' Sasuke thought.

"Naruto, get out of there now! He's going to destroy you!" Sakura yelled from her hiding spot.

Kakashi shook his head. "It's too late. Sennen Goroshi!"

What happened next was that Kakashi inserted his fingers into Naruto's... lower back... and sent him flying into the sky. The cries of pain that erupted from Naruto's mouth could be heard throughout all of Konoha.

"Was that even a technique?" Sakura asked herself with narrowed eyes.

'Great, I have an idiot for a sensei and a teammate.' the young Uchiha said inside his head.

'Just what kind of Taijutsu is that?' Shujinko thought both puzzled and embarrassed.

Konoha's infamous prankster landed in the water from a small river nearby. As he kept sinking, he had one thought in his head. 'I'm not going to let it end like this!' Pulling out two shurikens, he approached the surface and threw them at the Jounin. Unbeknownst to him, Shujinko nodded approvingly. That kind of strategy was far more adequate than his previous attempt.

As adequate as the new strategy was, it was simply not enough. Kakashi merely raised his hand and placed one finger in each of the shurikens' holes while still reading that book of his.

Naruto reached solid ground, gasping for air and completely wet. "What are you doing now?" Kakashi asked. "You know you won't have lunch if you don't have a bell by noon."

"I know, I know, you told us already!"

"You look pretty wobbly for someone who wants to be Hokage." Kakashi commented idly.

"You just caught me off-guard, that's all it was, believe it! I don't care what it takes, I'm going to take one of those bells. I'll find a way to do it, believe it! There's no way I'm going back to the Academy!" Naruto proclaimed.

After finishing his sentence, a group of Narutos jumped from the water and went to attack Kakashi. "Ha! You're overconfident, sensei! That's why you weren't expecting a Kage Bunshin attack, my best jutsu!" one of the clones yelled.

'Seven Narutos?' Sakura questioned himself. When the clones landed on the ground, they started running towards their target. These clones were no normal Bunshins at all. 'What? They're not images, they're real! How could he do that?'

'How does the dobe knows how to make so many clones? He couldn't even make a proper one back at the Academy, and now he can make seven solid copies all of the sudden? What happened to him?' Sasuke thought with a hint of envy. A hint of envy he would forever deny.

Shujinko was just as astonished. 'To do that many clones, Naruto needs to have either a tremendous amount of chakra or excellent chakra control. But he sucked at chakra control back at the Academy and nobody improves that quickly. Just how much chakra does he have?'

'Hhmmm, it looks like the stories are true. He can create Kage Bunshins after all. It's a Kinjutsu and he defeated Mizuki with it.' Kakashi thought to himself. "Great technique, but I don't think you can maintain it for very long. You talk like you're the best, but you're still the worst student. You can't beat me with this jutsu."

And then, the bells rang.

Naruto was grabbing Kakashi from the back.

'What? He got me from behind!' Kakashi mentally yelled. Sakura, Sasuke and Shujinko were every bit as shocked as their sensei. You could laugh at Naruto all you want, but he just caught a Jounin from behind. That right there was something very few Genin could say, specially coming from the dead-last of the class.

Laughing mischievously, Naruto simply had to mock the man. "Didn't you say don't let your enemy get behind you, sensei? Good advice, believe it."

One of the clones jumped and went for a punch. "This is for nailing me in the butt earlier!"

'When did Naruto get so cool?' Sakura thought in admiration. That was one thought she had never expected to come across with.

Even Sasuke had to admit the trick was ingenious. 'A diversionary attack... Not bad.'

For his part, Shujinko found himself smiling at the turn of events. Naruto's unpredictability turned out to be quite effective against the Jounin, and his ability to produce several clones were going to be very useful to his plan.

Yes, all of the time Shujinko was hiding, planning what to do to get those bells. He now had a certain idea of Kakashi's abilities thanks to Naruto. After a couple of minutes, he figured out that he was pretty much outclassed in every aspect. If he went alone, the Jounin would most likely subdue him in less than a minute and probably with little effort. What was worse, maybe he would get a taste of the Sennen Goroshi. That thought was NOT pleasant at all.

But if the four of them attacked at the same time, they might have a chance to actually get those bells.

He knew Sasuke's skills the most. Training with him for the last three years gave him an advantage, and he already knew what Sasuke's part was going to be in his plan. Of course, the proud Uchiha had to agree to work with him first, and that was the tricky part.

Sakura was kind of a wild card. She wasn't useless, but her biggest assets were not that helpful if one evaluated the situation. In the end, he managed to place her in a spot where she would contribute to the plan according to her set of skills.

Naruto was definitely a surprise. Before he demonstrated his use of solid clones, Shujinko didn't know what to do with him. Back at the Academy and to this day, his 'Taijutsu', if one could call it that, was basically street fighting. He had the strength, but he lacked the technique. And apart from the lack of variety, his impulsive nature made it rather easy to read his movements. His chakra control was laughable and to top it all up, his Genjutsu was nonexistent, but Shujinko could forgive that. Even he had trouble with Genjutsu to this day. He could identify and release most of them, but performing them was another thing. He only had one Genjutsu in his arsenal, and it was a simple D-rank technique.

However, the recent events made Shujinko reconsider his teammate. He had a lot of chakra at his disposal if his ability to perform solid clones was any indicator. He didn't even look tired at all, which was certainly a good thing. And because he was unpredictable, he was able to caught off-guard an experienced shinobi such as Hatake Kakashi. Yes, Naruto would fit in just fine.

His train of thought was interrupted by a sight to behold. Naruto was holding... Naruto while another Naruto was punching... Naruto?

"Huh? Wait a minute; you're Kakashi-sensei, aren't you!? Naruto's clone accused the real one. "You transformed into me using a jutsu!"

The clones started to fight themselves. Shouts of 'You are the fake!' and 'No, you are!' could be heard among the clones. Fortunately, one of the clones suggested the brilliant idea of having the jutsu undone. When it was, there was no Kakashi-sensei around. Just a severely beaten Naruto.

'Naruto, you are so not cool.' Sakura thought after seeing the blonde Genin acting like the usual baka he was.

'He caught you with a Kawarimi, loser. Kakashi let himself get caught by the dobe and replaced himself with one of the clones at the last moment. He was so smooth, he made Naruto look like a complete idiot.' Sasuke thought with a roll of his eyes.

While Naruto as still mad about his perfect plan not being perfect after all, he noticed something shinny near a tree. He came closer to see what was it, and he couldn't believe his eyes. Right there in front of him was a bell from Kakashi-sensei. "A bell!?" he exclaimed in disbelief. "I must've got him with my attack! He dropped a bell!" When he crawled to get the bell, the unexpected (for him at least) happened. His foot was caught in a trap and Naruto ended upside down hanging from the tree nearby. "Hey, what is this!? Let me go! Let me go! Help me!"

Sasuke sneered at him. 'Of course that was a trap, dobe. That Jounin doesn't let his guard down even for a second.'

Kakashi appeared near Naruto and grabbed the bell. "Think before you use a jutsu or else your opponent might use it against you. Oh, and by the way, if the bait is obvious then don't take it." he finished with his trade-mark eye-smile. "A ninja must see through deception."

"I GET IT!" Naruto yelled at the top of his lungs.

"I'm telling you because you don't get it. You think you get it which is not the same as actually getting it, get it?"

The Uchiha's eyes widened. 'This is my chance!' grabbing a handful of kunais and shurikens, Sasuke threw them at the Jounin who was still lecturing Naruto. The weapons reached the target and were nailed into Kakashi's body. The silver-haired man had a shocked expression on his face as he was falling to the ground. In a puff of smoke, a log with several shurikens and kunais stuck replaced the body of the Jounin.

'Gotta love Kawarimi no Jutsu.

Sasuke started jumping from branch to branch. 'Damn it! Another Kawarimi, and now he knows where I'm hiding. I gotta move fast!' he thought with gritted teeth. 'I thought he had let his guard down, but he did it on purpose and I fell for it.'

Not too far away, a pink-haired girl was running. 'Sasuke-kun, where are you? Don't tell me Kakashi-sensei found you! No, he can't catch my Sasuke-kun! I won't let him!' and then she stopped. Sakura spotted Kakashi not too far from her. Apparently, the Jounin hadn't picked up her presence as he was reading his Icha Icha without a care for the world, which made her sigh in relief.

"Pssst, Sakura, behind you."

Sakura turned around. Her sensei was behind her, and very close too.

A scream of terror was heard loud and clear.

* * *

Back with Shujinko, once he made sure Kakashi was far away, he got out of his hiding spot and approached Naruto. He quickly seized a kunai from the log the Jounin used as a Kawarimi and before Naruto could ask him what was he trying to do, Shujinko jumped and cut the rope the blonde Genin was holding to. After falling unceremoniously to the ground, Naruto got up and brushed the dust off his eye-sore of a jumpsuit. "Thanks, Shujinko. But I didn't need any help, believe it!"

"Yeah, well I think you did. Anyways, I need your help." Shujinko said straight to the point.

"Huh? You need my help?" Naruto asked baffled. He would've never imagined Shujinko asking for his help. After all, he was tons of better than him in the Academy even if he didn't want to admit it. But then again, he was never as arrogant as the teme.

Shujinko nodded. "That's right. I have a plan to get the bells from Kakashi-sensei, but I need you to participate as well as Sakura and Sasuke."

Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "But... But that doesn't make any sense! Shouldn't you be trying to get one of Kakashi-sensei's bells for yourself?"

"True, but I honestly doubt that I have the skills to outmatch a Jounin. However, if we work together, then maybe and just maybe we will be able to get those bells."

"We?"

"Yes, as in Team 7."

Naruto rubbed his chin as he evaluated his options. On one hand, he had the opportunity to work with Shujinko to get the bells and actually pass the test, but that meant working alongside the teme, which would suck a lot. On the other hand, if he tried to get the bells himself... Well, his previous encounter with Kakashi-sensei were fruitless, to say the least.

"I'll work with you... but under one condition!"

Shujinko rolled his eyes. "And what condition would that be?"

Snickering, Naruto proclaimed loudly. "That we leave the teme out of the plan! If we pass the test with Sakura-chan and not Sasuke, then we would make the perfect team!"

"Sorry Naruto, but we need Sasuke to make the plan work."

"But-"

"Listen, we're running out of time here. If you can't work with Sasuke for at least five minutes, just tell me now so I can be on my way. So, are you in or out?" Shujinko asked in exasperation.

After a minute, a reluctant sigh came out of Naruto's mouth. "... Fine. But that doesn't mean I like it!"

The brown-haired boy smiled. "I know you don't. Now, I'm going to look for Sasuke while you will go find Sakura. When you find her, tell her that Sasuke has a plan and that he asked us to support him."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "But... Sasuke-teme doesn't have a plan, does he?"

"I doubt it."

"So you want me to lie to Sakura-chan!" Naruto realized in horror. Lying to his Sakura-chan was considered a sin in his book.

"That is exactly what I want you to do. I know you don't like it, but we all know how Sakura follows Sasuke like a lost puppy and she probably won't come with us if either of us asked her to. It's the only way." Shujinko explained.

As much as he hated to admit it, Shujinko was right. His Sakura-chan rarely paid him any attention, focusing entirely on that damn teme. That was one of the reasons Naruto hated Sasuke. Sakura, the girl he loved with all of his heart, was in love with Sasuke with all of her heart, and that ungrateful bastard wouldn't even give her the time of the day. Naruto would give anything to receive that kind of attention, if only for a day. The teme, on the other hand, received that kind of attention every day, and he rejected everyone.

"Ok, I'll go tell her. But isn't she going to be mad at me once she knows the truth?" Naruto asked.

Shujinko nodded. "Probably, but don't worry because I'll take the blame. Now, when you see an explosion in the sky, that's my signal telling you where I am. Got it?"

"Got it! I'll go looking for Sakura-chan now!" Naruto replied as he started to run through the forest.

As the golden-eyed boy dashed through the training ground, he kept checking his plan in order to consider another action or improve the general idea. Fist, Naruto would create a distraction that would leave his sensei momentarily stunned. He was a Jounin and his instincts were surely better adapted to those kinds of situations, so his shock would only last several seconds at the best. Immediately, Sakura would jump in and attack Kakashi from a safe distance while at the same time making him retreat or evade the attack, leaving himself open for an incoming. Shujinko already decided what incoming was going to be, and that was the part where he and Sasuke had to act. Then, he needed some real distraction. Something that not even a Jounin would expect.

And then in hit him.

Oh yes, THAT should work just fine.

While Shujinko kept checking on his plan, his gaze met something quite unexpected. On the ground, Sasuke's head was moving back and forth in an attempt of getting out.

"Kai!" Shujinko said as in trying to release a Genjutsu. But Sasuke's head was still moving on the ground and Shujinko was sure he had released the Genjutsu. So, maybe it wasn't a Genjutsu at all? Well, there was only one way to find out. With one hand covering his laughter, Shujinko made his way to his teammates head.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked with a scowl.

"Trying to get a bell, of course. What are you doing... there?"

Sasuke snarled. "That bastard pulled a jutsu on me." was his only answer.

"I see. Well, let me help you."

"No, I can get out of here by myself."

Shujinko shrugged gracefully. "Suit yourself. I'm sure you can get out of there on your own in less than thirty minutes, which by the way, is the time we have left." he said as he started walking away.

"... Wait."

Shujinko turned around to face Sasuke.

"Get me out of here... please."

Knowing how tough it was for Sasuke to put away his pride, Shujinko resisted the urge to smirk at him. He simply nodded and started digging Sasuke out of his misery. When he was done, Shujinko grabbed a kunai with an exploding tag placed on the grip and threw it to the sky. With a ram hand sign, the kunai exploded in the air, leaving a big cloud of smoke behind.

"What was that for? You're giving our location to Kakashi." Sasuke questioned with a frown.

"That's for Naruto and Sakura to know where we are. We need them here so I can explain our plan."

"What plan?"

"Getting Kakashi-sensei's bells. Are you even listening to me?"

The Uchiha scoffed at him. "I don't need any of you to get a bell. I'll take one myself."

The Ozuma cocked an eyebrow in response. "Sasuke, you ended up buried into the ground when you tried to take one bell by yourself, literally. What makes you think next time is going to be different? Do you truly believe that you have what it takes to defeat an experienced Jounin such as him?"

"... I managed to touch the bells when I was fighting him. What about you? Did you get that close as well?"

"No. But then again, I'm not the one that ended up buried. Face it, the only way we can get those bells is if we try together." Shujinko insisted.

Sasuke pondered over the best course of action. He may be arrogant, but he wasn't stupid. He witnessed the Jounin's ability first-hand. Even if he kept thinking about other things he could've tried in order to win, but every possible scenario ended up the same way, with him losing and failing the exam by extent. In other words, he would be sent back to the Academy where he would be wasting time, time he could spend getting stronger to achieve his goal of surpassing Him.

That was unacceptable.

"What's the point? One of us is going to fail anyways. There are only three bells." Sasuke stated.

"That may be so, but I look at it this way: With the four of us working together, three of us may get the bells. With none of us working together, nobody will get any bell."

Once again, Sasuke had to admit Shujinko's idea made sense. After a moment of silence, the last Uchiha spoke up. "I suppose you have a plan."

The golden-eyed boy nodded. "I do."

"OI GUYS, WE'RE HERE!" Naruto's loud voice came through. The blonde was coming towards them accompanied by the Haruno girl.

"Sasuke-kun, you're alright! I was so worried about you!" Sakura yelled, much to everyone's annoyance. "Naruto told me you were looking for me!"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I am not looking for anyone and I didn't tell the dobe to do anything."

Sakura's face dropped as she stuttered. "Bu-but... Naruto said that..." and her eyes fixated on Naruto. "Did you lie to me, Naruto-baka!?"

Naruto instantly cowered and took a step backwards with his hands in the air. "I'm sorry, Sakura-chan! Shujinko told me to do it so we could all be together! He says he has a plan that might work, believe it!"

The pink-haired girl glared at Shujinko. "Why do we have to listen to you? You're not the team leader, so don't order me or Sasuke-kun around! And besides, I bet Sasuke-kun has a way better plan than whatever you-"

"Sakura, just shut up and listen to Shujinko." Sasuke said. After all of their time together, Sasuke came to respect Shujinko's strategic mind. When they took breaks from their training, Shujinko and Sasuke would sometimes play Shogi together. While they were both pretty much equal in terms of physical strength, Shujinko was noticeably better at him when it came to strategy. After all, when you had Shikamaru as a Shogi playmate, you did get better at it. Adding the fact that Shujinko was naturally creative and observant, the brown-haired boy developed a sharp mind for tactics that could be used for board games as well as in real life. Sasuke ended up learning a thing or two about strategy himself, and thus a greater appreciation for the art of thinking ahead.

"Thanks, Sasuke. Listen here now because we don't have that much time. Naruto, I'm going to need you to do three clones..."

* * *

Kakashi was currently reading his Icha Icha, wondering what had happened to his cute little students. After his encounter with Sasuke, neither Naruto nor Sakura had tried to gain a bell. And Shujinko had yet to try to get one. 'Oh well, they're the ones who won't get lunch. And besides, this chapter is looking really good. Hehehe.' the Jounin mentally giggled as he continued to read his beloved piece of literature. Things were looking very interesting right now, and Hitomi-chan was being particularly flirty with Taonu-kun. More giggles.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI, I'VE FINALLY FOUND YOU!" a familiar voice shouted in front of him.

With a sigh, Kakashi raised his only visible eye. "Naruto, do you really have to do this now? I was getting to a very good part of the book."

"Well guess what, sensei! You won't have any time to read that filth now that you're going up against me, believe it!"

Another sigh came out of the silver-haired man. "Haven't you learned anything by now, Naruto? You can't defeat me even if you try your hardest. It's useless."

"Useless, huh? I'll show you!"

Naruto started running against the man, who didn't even bother to put the book away. As the blond was getting closer, he noticed two other clones approaching him from the back. 'Hhmmm, so it wasn't just a straight-forward attack, after all. Still, I expected more.' the Hatake thought with little care.

Bad mistake.

"Now!" Naruto yelled as he placed an exploding tag to his belly, his clones doing the same.

Kakashi's eye widened. 'What is he thinking!? He's going to get himself killed! Wait, is he a Kage Bunshin as well!?' the Jounin realized a bit too late.

BOOOOM BOOOOM BOOOOM

The three Narutos exploded near Kakashi, who had barely managed to jump just in time. 'Wow, they really are coming to me with the intent to kill. Was it because I told them to or because I came four hours late today?'

The Jounin didn't have the time to answer himself. Sakura was in the air with three shurikens in each hand. Without thinking twice, the pink-haired female threw the weapons at her sensei, who was forced to use a Kawarimi to save his skin. The log was now sporting six shurikens as Kakashi landed to the ground.

"Sasuke, now!"

Kakashi turned around to see both Shujinko and Sasuke doing hand signs. Recognizing the hand signs his students were performing, the one-eyed Jounin knew in that moment that things were not looking good for him.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

"Fuuton: Daitoppa!"

The moment the gust of wind was combined with the fireball, the second mentioned jutsu increased its proportions by at least three-fold. The now massive fireball was going directly towards him, burning everything on its path. Not knowing what else to do, the silver-haired man was forced to jump again. Little did he know that was exactly what the Genins wanted him to do.

The moment he jumped, fifty Naruto's clones did as well. The clones had been hiding all of this time, waiting for the moment to strike. Poor Kakashi was already starting to think the way to get himself out of this mess when suddenly all of the clones 'poofed' out of existence, leaving a very big smoke cloud behind. With his vision severely reduced, the last thing the Hatake registered was a hand near his hip and the sound of bells ringing.

Once the smoke cleared out, Kakashi was rewarded with a sight he honestly hadn't expected to see. His four Genins were standing in front of him with Naruto holding the three bells, grinning like an idiot.

"We did it! We did it! We got the bells! Believe it, be-freaking-lieve it!"

"As a matter of fact, you did. I am very impressed. But..." Kakashi responded, instantly interrupting Naruto from his cheering. "...don't forget that there are only three bells here. Now, which one of you is not going to get lunch?"

...

"WHAAAAAT! Kakashi-sensei, that is so not fair!" Naruto all but roared with a finger pointing at the Jounin. "We all worked together to get the bells so we all should get lunch!"

Sakura started to pale. Out of the four, she was the one that had done the less. Naruto did most of the work with his clones and actually snatching the bells from their sensei while Shujinko was the one that came up with the successful plan and the one that supported Sasuke's jutsu with his own. The only thing she did was throwing shurikens and kunais at him from a safe distance, which was nowhere near as contributive as what Naruto or Sasuke or Shujinko had done. Was she going to be separated from Sasuke? The mere thought of losing the love of her life terrified her.

"Life is not fair Naruto, especially the life of a shinobi. Now, why don't you start choosing who will skip lunch before I choose him or her myself?"

Naruto was trembling out of irritation. After all they did working together that bastard basically wanted them to betray one another. Ok, so maybe he was tempted to make the teme skip lunch, but in the end he knew it wasn't fair. Everyone on the team contributed with something, even the broody bastard. Glaring fiercely at his sensei, Naruto made a vow: Once he became Hokage, he would never let any other team go through this kind of stupid test.

But before anyone could protest, Shujinko raised his voice. "So, after all we did together as a team, you want us to split apart and make us fight each other." he commented/stated. Receiving no answer from his sensei, the boy spoke up. "Fine. If that is what you want, then fail me."

The rest of the Genins were in shock. Had their teammate gone insane?

"Why, Shujinko? You were the one that came up with an awesome plan, so you should stay here on the team, believe it!"

Shujinko shook his head. "I'm sorry, Naruto. But I have no desire on staying on a team that has that kind of man as a sensei. What he is doing is cruel and I want no part in it. You can have this guy as a sensei for all I care, but I don't want to have any kind of business with him. So, are you going to fail me or not?" he said with a defiant glare. His stubbornness did cause him a few altercates in the past, but he wasn't thinking about that right now. If he was going to get himself failed, then he would do with style and bravery, standing his ground all the way through. He wouldn't have it any other way.

... Silence...

Much to everyone's surprise, the Jounin gave them an eye-smile. "Actually, I have to say that all four of you pass. Congratulations!"

…

"NAAANIIIII!?"

* * *

And that was chapter two. How do you like the story and the character so far? Please warn me for any grammatical mistakes so I can fix them.

Just in case…

Sennen Goroshi: One Thousand Years of Death

Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu

Fuuton: DaitoppaWind Style: Great Breakthrough

Ja ne!


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3: SO, YOU WANT A C-RANK**

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

Astonishment. That was the perfect word to describe the atmosphere around the Genins from Team 7. They pass? After all that drama and tension, suddenly their sensei decided to give them one of his eye-smiles (eye-smiles that Shujinko was really starting to hate, by the way) and tell them they all pass? What the heck was that about?

"Hum, sensei, what do you mean we all pass?" Sakura asked meekly.

"You were the first team to actually realize the true meaning behind the test." Kakashi explained. His eye-smile was replaced with a lifted eyebrow when he saw the facial expressions of his cute little students, especially 'brownie'. "You did realize the true meaning of the test, right?"

A dead silence was his answer.

"(Sigh) Tell me, which one of you created the plan to obtain the bells?"

"That would be me, sensei." Shujinko answered still somewhat confused.

Kakashi nodded. "First of all, congratulations for thinking such an elaborated strategy. You must play a lot of Shogi, am I right?" he asked, making the teen laugh sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head. Having your intelligence praised by a Jounin was quite the ego-boost. "What did you take into account when you were forming your plan?"

Shujinko stopped laughing and got serious. "I thought about my teammates qualities as well as well as mine. Basically, I devised a strategy were we could use our advantages against you."

"I see. And why didn't you try to think of a strategy where only you would end up obtaining a bell?"

The golden-eyed boy gave him an 'are-you-seriously-asking-that-question' kind of look. "Because I was more than aware that I couldn't get one by myself. With the rest of the team, however, we had a real shot."

The eye-smile appeared once more. "Well there you have it! You worked as a team to achieve a goal that was next to impossible to do on your own."

"So, the whole purpose of the test was to see if we could work as a team. The answer all-along was... teamwork?" Naruto suggested a little uncertain. Thinking about hidden meanings behind tests wasn't exactly his thing.

"Right you are, my little blonde munchkin. All of the other teams I have tested in the past simply did exactly what I said, and fell into every trap. They simply couldn't think for themselves. A ninja must see through deception, very much like when Shujinko here had breakfast when I suggested him not to. Remember this: In the shinobi world, those who break the rules are considered scum, and that's true. But those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." the Jounin said as he looked into the sky, as if he was recalling something life-changing that had happened a long time ago. Something that transformed him into the very man that he was to this day.

Naruto had tears threatening to fall in his eyes. "Wow. He actually kind of cool." he said to his teammates.

Shujinko was also staring at the man in a mix of awe and guiltiness. The silver-haired man turned out to be exactly the opposite of what he had thought. All of this time he had encouraged teamwork. The shame he felt for himself was not unjustified, either. All of those years in the Academy, thinking highly of himself for being strong and smart, yet on the actual battlefield he made little effort on considering one of the most basics principles he thought he had learned back then.

'Shinobi must see through deception'.

So simple, yet so hard to realize it's true importance. He felt like smacking himself in the face.

Before anyone could say anything, their new sensei spoke up again. "The exercise is over. Everyone passes and Team 7 starts its first mission tomorrow."

Sakura gasped in delight.

Shujinko nodded with a smile.

Sasuke closed his eyes and let a small smirk take a place on his usually stoic face.

Naruto... "I did it, I did it! I'm a ninja, ninja, ninja!"

The brown-haired boy took the chance to make amends with his new sensei. "Kakashi-sensei, I apologize for what I said about you earlier." Shujinko started to say. "I let my emotions get the better of me. Because of that, I acted like no shinobi should. Specially a fresh Genin. Can we... uuhhh, have a fresh start, so to say?"

For once, Kakashi gave his new student an eye-smile that Shujinko didn't consider annoying. "Don't worry about it. You were willing to sacrifice yourself in the name of teamwork and you even went as far as to defy me so the others could make it. If anything, I'm proud of you."

And with that said, Shujinko smiled at the one-eyed Jounin. Something was telling him that he was going to like the man. Saying his goodbyes to everyone, Shujinko started to walk his way home, wanting nothing more than to tell his family the good news. A little trip to Yoi's Sakana to celebrate his now 100% official Genin tittle didn't sound too bad, either.

|Shujinko's house|

"Onii-chan, you're back!" a squeaky voice yelled as soon as Shujinko entered his house. The source of the voice was none other than Ozuma Nanami, Shujinko's younger sister. The little girl had the same kind of hair as her brother, although much longer and she wore it in a ponytail. Her eyes were just as bright and golden as Shujinko's.

"Hey there, chibi-chan." Shujinko replied with a smile as Nanami hugged him.

"Kaa-chan said that you had a test today with your new team! How did it go? Did you pass?"

Shujinko puffed his chest with pride. "Of course I did! What did you expect?"

Nanami giggled and hugged the brown-haired boy once again. 'Onii-chan is so cool!'

"What about you? How were classes today?"

A pout replaced the smile on Nanami's face. "Onii-chan, the classes are so boring! Iruka-sensei always makes us sit down and listen boring stuff! When am I going to learn cool things like jutsus?"

"You have to learn how to walk before you can run, Nanami." Shujinko said with his lecture-mode on. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

She clearly didn't. "But onii-chan, I know how to walk and I know how to run! What does that has to do with anything?"

Shujinko sighed. That kind of answer was so Naruto-like. He shuddered at the thought of her sweet little sister becoming exactly like Naruto. Don't get him wrong, he respected the whiskered boy as a person and was starting to see him as a friend. After all, the test they just went through made the Genin bond with is team, if only a little. But if someone called Naruto a loud idiot dumber than rocks... Well, they honestly weren't THAT far from the truth. "Then how about this? If you promise me that you'll pay attention at the Academy, train as hard as you can and never become a fangirl, I'll treat you to some sushi AND teach you some cool jutsus. How does that sounds?"

Fortunately, Ozuma Nanami liked sushi just as much as Shujinko did. "Really?" she asked with shiny eyes that seemed to radiate with glee.

"Yes, really." Shujinko said with a grin. For his sister, he would do almost anything.

The little girl started to bounce in anticipation. The prospect of having her older brother teaching him awesome, flashy jutsus and getting sushi as well was almost too good to be true. "Ok, I promise I'll pay attention and work and not become a fangirl! Oh, and both tou-chan and kaa-chan left us some money so we can have dinner, by the way. They said that they would return late from work."

"I see. You wanna' come with me to Yoi Sakana's?"

As if he needed to hear her answer.

On their way to their beloved sushi stand, Shujinko and Nanami talked about aimless things as they were holding hands. The older brother explained several things to her, like what was expected of him now that he was a Genin and how the shinobi world worked, or at least how he saw it. He also made sure to pound into her head that she had to work hard for her dreams and know the value of teamwork. Maybe she didn't understand it at this precise moment, but Shujinko knew for a fact that, if her Genin exam was going to be anything like the one he had recently gone through, then she would thank him later on. Nanami listened to his words with complete attention, enjoying every minute of it. Even though Shujinko was merely a fresh Genin, she looked at him like he was an old sage with years of wisdom and experience under his belt.

"Onii-chan?"

"Hhmmm?"

"What's a fangirl?"

Shujinko rubbed his chin, trying to find the appropriate words. "A fangirl... How do I put this? A fangirl is basically a girl that think and does... illogical things regarding a certain boy. They are crazy for a guy and would do pretty much anything to pick his attention. For example, do you remember Sasuke, the boy that I train with and my teammate?"

"Sasuke-chan?" Nanami asked innocently. She had a habit of adding the chan suffix to almost everyone she knew.

Snickering at the suffix, Shujinko nodded. "Yeah, him. Back at the Academy, he had tons and tons of fangirls pestering him every day. If anyone had something bad to say about him, they would always screech, yell and insult the unfortunate soul. Fangirls are usually weak, annoying, loud and useless. They care more about their looks than their skills. So tell me Nanami, do you want to be a fangirl?"

"No! I'll never be a fangirl! Never!" the little girl shouted, casually making a lot of civilians to turn their heads and observe with intrigue and confusion at the pair. Nanami couldn't believe girls like that were actual kunoichis. She simply couldn't. Why would they want to follow a boy day and night like psychopaths when they could be training or even studying? It made no sense whatsoever.

"That's good to hear." Shujinko said with a chuckle, satisfied by her answer. "Now, about that sushi, do you think kaa-chan will be bothered if we-"

"Alright, here I go! Itadakimasu!"

The golden-eyed boy turned his head to the right, recognizing the loud voice almost instantly. In a small and humble food stand, Naruto was eating (devouring would be the exact word) a big bowl of ramen. To his left, four more bowls were stacked near him. Naruto was oblivious to the fact that his teammate and his younger sister were near him, being too busy slurping his noodles and what not. Shujinko decided to eat something else for once and take a moment to know his teammate more.

"Come here, Nanami. I want you to meet my teammate." Shujinko told his sister. Making his way to the ramen stand, Shujinko raised his voice. "Hey Naruto!"

Naruto turned around. "Shguginkgoh, hgey mang!" he managed to say with his mouth full of his favorite food.

"Naruto-kun, it's impolite to talk to somebody with your mouth full of food." a girl dressed as a cook scolded good-naturally to the hyperactive teenager. Shujinko stared at her for a minute before approaching the food stand. The girl had black eyes and bright brown hair, almost the same color as Nanami's. She was actually kind of cute and seemed nice, but she was noticeably older than the boys, which made Shujinko discard any ideas he may or may not have about the girl.

'Damn, if only she was just a little younger.' Shujinko thought with a bitter chuckle.

Swallowing the ramen, Naruto gave the girl an embarrassed smile. "Sorry, Ayame-nee-chan." then he turned to face Shujinko and his sister who were standing right next to him by now. "Hey man, what are you doing here? And who's the little girl?"

Before Shujinko could reply, Nanami stepped in. "I'm not a little girl, I'm seven years old!" she said with a pout.

Ignoring his little sister's comment, Shujinko proceeded to explain himself. "I was just about to grab a bite with chibi-chan here but then I saw you and figured I might as well try some of that ramen you're so obsessed about. Care if we join?"

The whiskered boy's face instantly perked in joy. "Sure you can! Ramen is awesome and everyone should enjoy it, believe it!"

With a smile, Shujinko nodded and took a sit next to him with Nanami doing the same. "Onii-chan, do we have to eat ramen? You said we were going to have sushi!" Nanami whined.

"Come on, Nanami. It won't hurt to try a different kind of food for once. Who knows? Maybe you'll end up liking it more than sushi." Shujinko tried to reason with his sister.

"Yeah! And besides, ramen is way better than sushi or any other food out there." Naruto said.

Nanami glared at the blonde boy who had the audacity to disrespect the best food ever. "You're wrong! Sushi is way better than ramen! I bet ramen is yucky!" she said with a threatening face. Of course, her expression was as threatening as a little bunny rabbit, or so Shujinko thought.

"Hey, I'm not gonna stand here and let you insult my ramen! Ramen beats the crap out of your filthy sushi!"

"Shut up, whiskered jerk!"

"You shut up, baby face!"

"Your hair is weird and stupid! And your jumpsuit is also stupid!"

"Ha! At least I'm not a midget!"

"I'm not a midget!"

Shujinko had enough of the childish argument. "Dear Kami, can you two please shut your mouths for a second?"

"But Shujinko/Onii-chan, she/he was being mean!" both of them said at the same time.

"Apologize to one another. Now."

"But-"

"NOW."

The Uzumaki and the Ozuma apologized, although it was clear that neither of them were sorry at all. The rest of the meal went smoothly, with Naruto and Shujinko talking to one another about whatever stuff they felt like discussing. Nanami stayed silent and slowly ate her bowl of ramen. As much as she hated to admit it, the ramen was absolutely delicious and would've asked for a second round if it wasn't for her stubbornness. Shujinko had two bowls of ramen and was absolutely delighted with the dish. As soon as he was finished, Naruto was already on his eighth bowl, which made Shujinko wonder if there was a bottomless pit inside of Naruto's stomach. After saying their goodbyes to Naruto, Ayame and Teuchi, the Ozuma siblings started walking towards their home.

"So, chibi-chan." Shujinko started to say. "What do you think about ramen now?"

She muttered something Shujinko couldn't quite understand.

"What was that?"

With great reluctance, Nanami opened her mouth. "I said it wasn't bad."

"Oh, just admit that you liked it already." Shujinko said with a sly smirk. He loved teasing his younger sister, especially at times like these.

"I didn't like it! It just... It just wasn't as bad as I thought it would be! Sushi is still way better than that ramen thing!" Nanami blurted out with a cute shade of pink adorning her cheeks.

With a chuckle, Shujinko patted his younger sister's head and continued to walk, preparing himself mentally for the future missions. He just hoped that they weren't as bothersome as he heard them to be. Come on, D-ranks couldn't be that boring right?

|Five days later|

"Sasuke, I'm at point B."

"Sakura, I'm at point C."

"Shujinko, I'm at point D."

...

"Naruto, I'm at point A. Believe it."

"You're slow, Naruto. Ok Team 7, get ready for action."

Within the forest of Konohagakure, a dark shadow-like figure started to move in a blur of speed.

"The target has moved, follow it!" Kakashi commanded through his communication device.

And followed it they did. Team 7 darted through the trees, quickly going into hiding to avoid getting noticed by the ferocious beast that was their target.

"What's your distance from the target?" Kakashi asked.

"Around five meters." Shujinko quickly responded as he judged the space between them.

"Kakashi-sensei, I'm ready. Just give the signal." Naruto pleaded, wanting nothing more than to just finish the job that they were assigned.

Sasuke nodded to himself. "I'm ready too."

Sakura was fast to reply. "So am I."

"Same here." was Shujinko's answer.

"Very well... Now!"

The four of them jumped with Naruto in the middle. Four meters, the animal turned its head. Three meters, the animal started to run. Two meters, Naruto opened his arms. One meter...

"I GOT YOU!"

Letting out the mightiest of shrieks, the cat from the Daimyo's wife started to scratch Naruto's face while Naruto tried to subdue the untamable beast that was Tora.

Shujinko sighed. He hadn't said anything for the past five days, but the tediousness of the D-ranks missions was starting to get on his nerves. 'They shouldn't even be called missions. If anything, they're more like chores.' he thought. Of course, he was mature enough to endure the assignments without complaining, but he sure as hell didn't enjoy them. It was almost like he had wasted his time, training day and night and improving step by step just so he could fix someone's garden for the simple reason that the garden's owner was too lazy to do it himself. It was exasperating.

Snapping back to reality, Shujinko had the courtesy to lift Tora from Naruto, who was now sporting several cuts on his hands and face. With soft and caring hands, Shujinko started to slowly pet the poor thing. Tora relaxed at the gentle touch that the boy provided and started to purr in pure delight. Meanwhile, Sasuke confirmed the target to Kakashi.

"CAN'T WE HAVE A REAL MISSION FOR ONCE!? I SERIOUSLY HATE CATS!" Naruto yelled, oblivious to the fact that his communication device was still turned on. Everyone winced in pain; It was like having Naruto yelling at you right in your ear. Definitely not a pleasurable experience.

|Hokage's office|

"Ohh, my cute little Tora-chan! Mommy was so worried about you, but its ok now. Mommy is here and she's not ever letting you go." the Daimyo's wife declared as she hugged the poor cat to death. Tora was literally crying in pain, trying to get out of the woman's grip so she could go back into the boy's arms.

'No wonder why she's always running away. That lady is tearing her skin off with those claws she has for fingertips.' Shujinko thought feeling truly sorry for the cat.

Naruto wasn't thinking exactly like his brown-haired friend. "Hahaha, stupid cat! That kitty deserves to be strangled."

The Hokage raised his voice with his pipe still hanging from his mouth. "I see you have accomplished your mission. We have a couple of requests that need to be attended. Helping a civilian woman with her shopping, babysit the grandsons of an elder man, paint the fence of-"

"No! I wanna do a serious mission! Something challenging and exciting, not this little kid stuff!" Naruto complained rather loudly.

'The dobe's has a point.' Sasuke reluctantly admitted. He too was getting annoyed by the irrelevance of their latest tasks.

'He's such a pain.' Sakura frowned with her gaze focused on Naruto.

Kakashi groaned. 'I knew this was going to happen sooner or later.'

Standing from his chair, Iruka yelled at his surrogate little brother. "How dare you, idiot!" You're just a fresh Genin with absolutely no experience! Like everyone else, you start with simple missions to develop your skills and prove yourself! You're in no position to demand anything from Hokage-sama!"

"Are you serious!? Babysitting is not a mission!" Naruto retorted just as loud, if not louder than the Chunin. "I'm a great ninja and I-" whatever he was going to say, he was interrupted by a fist to the back of his head, courtesy of Team 7's ever-loving sensei.

"Can you please shut up, Naruto?" Kakashi asked in his usually lazy voice. The blond boy started to whimper as he rubbed his head, too busy dealing with the pain to give a proper answer.

Hiruzen coughed. "Naruto-kun, it seems to me that you do not understand the tasks you have been given." he stated, making Naruto to stop rubbing his head and pay attention to the old man. "Listen, we receive a lot of requests here every day, and we assign them depending on their level of difficulty. Genins like yourself are given D-ranks missions, which consist of request with the lowest levels of difficulty. Occasionally a Genin team might receive a C-rank mission, but that only happens when..." and so, the old Hokage explained the shinobi mission system. He was so caught up in his own explanation that he forgot to see if Naruto was following any of this.

And of course, he wasn't.

"So yesterday I had miso ramen so I think I'll have some pork ramen today." Naruto said casually to his team.

"Hey, listen to me when I'm talking to you!" the Hokage snapped, a twitch on his eye.

Naruto turned around and faced the village's leader. "You always lecture me like you're my oji-chan or something, but I'm not the little brat that used to do pranks all the time. I'm a ninja now and I want an actual ninja mission." he stated. And to prove his point, Naruto sat down once more with his arms crossed while giving his back to the Sarutobi. To make things even better, he sported a real mature pout on his face.

Kakashi scratched the back of his head. 'I'm going to hear about this later.' he thought in distress.

Shujinko, who had stayed silent the whole time, decided to give the Hokage his own thoughts in a more professional, respectful and appropriate fashion. "Hokage-sama, with all due respect, I think that a minor C-rank mission would do us some good. D-ranks missions may be useful for developing teamwork between teams, but a more... 'dangerous' mission like a C-rank would be a perfect test to see how much our teamwork has progressed. I suggest that we take a C-rank assignment and have Kakashi-sensei evaluate our performance. If he thinks that we are lacking teamwork by the end of the mission, then we will go back to plain D-ranks until he deem us ready."

The blonde Genin perked up by the words of his golden-eyed friend, happy to know that someone was backing him up on this. "Yeah, exactly what Shujinko just said! We can show you and Kakashi-sensei that our teamwork kicks butt!"

'Shujinko is so much more mature than Naruto.' Sakura thought approvingly. It was never bad to have someone like that on your team, especially when your team already had an obnoxious knucklehead aboard.

'Not bad, Shujinko. Not bad at all.' Kakashi thought with a smile hidden behind his mask.

Shujinko's explanation seemed to make the Hokage reconsider. Finally, after debating with himself for a couple of minutes, he chuckled. "Naruto-kun wants to prove that he's not a brat, but a former brat. Meanwhile, Shujinko-kun thinks that his team can be tested with a more serious assignment. So be it. I will give a C-rank mission. You will be bodyguards on a journey." he announced, making everyone in the room except for the Hatake to go wide-eyed in surprise.

As it was expected, Naruto was the first to respond. "Really? Who will we be protecting? A princess? An important councilor?"

The brown-haired boy held back a chuckle. 'Yeah right. As if the Hokage would task a week-old Genin team with the protection of someone like that.'

"Don't be so impatient. I will bring him here now." Hiruzen answered before looking at his secretary. "Please, send in our visitor."

The secretary nodded and opened the door behind Team 7. Once the door was opened, the client stepped in. And it was the exact opposite of what Naruto expected.

"What the... A bunch of snot-nosed brats?" the client said. The client was a man wearing glasses, probably in his sixties and had tanned skin with grey hair and beard. He was drinking sake from a bottle and he appeared to be slightly drunk because of his voice tone and reddened nose. After taking a big gulp from his bottle, the man frowned at the sight of his supposed bodyguards. "And you, the little one with the idiotic look on his face. Do you really expect me to believe that you're a ninja?"

Naruto started laughing. "Who's the little one with the idiotic look on his face?" and then he realized that both Shujinko and Sasuke were roughly the same height while Sakura was slightly shorter than the two of them, thus making him the little one with the idiotic look on his face. Before he could try anything, Kakashi grabbed him from the back. "I'll demolish you! Let me get him! Come here!"

"You don't attack the client, Naruto. It doesn't work that way."

"My name is Tazuna, a master bridge-builder." the man said after taking another gulp from his sake. "I must return to my country. I'm building a bridge there that will change our world and I expect you to get me there safely, even if it means giving up your lives."

And with that said, Team 7 went to their houses to pack for a medium-term mission.

|Shujinko's house|

"Onii-chan, do you really have to go?" Nanami asked with evident sadness. Her brother had just told her that he and his team were going to Nami no Kuni for a week or more in a mission. She felt happy for him, but she also felt sad, very sad. Nanami liked to be seen as strong and independent, but with Shujinko, things were different. The both of them shared a unique kind of bond between older brother and younger sister, where the older brother taught, protected and spent time with his younger sister while the younger sister listened, learned and obeyed her older brother. Shujinko would always find the time to play with her when he could; making sure that she was feeling happy. Nanami treasured those kinds of moments and would do all sort of things to impress him and get him to pay her attention, like a lot of younger siblings her age did.

"I do, chibi-chan." Shujinko replied as he packed some food and water in his backpack. "I know that you don't like it, but don't feel bad. I'm only gonna be away for about a week, two weeks at the most." he assured her.

After all, it was just a C-Rank.

Nanami quickly wiped a tear from her eye. "But I don't want to wait! Can I please come with you? I promise I won't bother you or anything."

"I'm sorry chibi-chan, but you know you can't." Shujinko said, touched by her innocence. "Come on, don't look at me like that. When you grow up and become a ninja, you'll also have to do these kinds of things."

The little girl wasn't satisfied by the answer, but nodded nonetheless with her eyes tearing.

Shujinko then made his way to his father and mother. His father, Ozuma Daichi, was a forty year-old man with short brown hair and black eyes. He usually wore a white kimono with a blue sash around his waist. The man had a stern, but encouraging expression on his face. Ozuma Masumi, his mother, was a thirty-eight year-old woman with brown eyes and long black hair. She wore a grey dress under a white apron. Unlike her husband, Masumi had a soft and caring facial expression. The two of them were worried about his son for taking a C-rank mission this early on his life, but they also knew that Shujinko was a strong and smart boy. Neither of them expected their son to become such a talented ninja, or a ninja at all. Civilian kids rarely ended up being top of the class students in the Ninja Academy, but if anyone could do it, it was their son.

"Tou-san, kaa-san, I have to go now. Take care of Nanami-chan for me and make sure she doesn't get in any trouble while I'm gone. I'll miss you." Shujinko said as his mother pulled him into a tender hug.

"We'll miss you too, Shujinko. Please be careful. I don't want my baby boy to get hurt, even if he's a grown up shinobi." Masumi said between sniffles.

Shujinko would normally protest against his mother calling him 'baby boy', but decided to let it slide this time. Then he turned to face his father.

Daichi placed his hands on his son's shoulders and gave him a smile. "I trust you will do just fine out there. You've grown into a young man, a young man that I'm more than proud of. Take care and make us proud, Shujinko."

"I will, tou-san." the golden-eyed boy said before turning around one more time to hug Nanami, who was trying her hardest not to cry. "I'll miss you the most, chibi-chan."

"I'll miss you two, onii-chan."

And with that said, Shujinko grabbed his backpack and walked his way to the Konoha Gates, where his team (minus Kakashi of course) was already waiting for him.

Chapter 3 everyone.

If you have any suggestions on this chapter or my writing style, feel free to tell me. Positive feedback is always welcomed.

Special thanks to **Lightningscar** for taking the time to correct my grammar mistakes. You're the real MVP.

Ja ne!


	4. Chapter 4 (part 1)

**CHAPTER 4: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 1)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

* * *

(Konoha Gates)

Kakashi arrived three hours late to where his team and client were expecting him. Of course, he didn't show up late because he wanted to. What kind of sensei would do such a thing? The problem was that, in an example of kindness and chivalry, he helped an elderly woman with her shopping bags. After all, it was nothing but what was expected from a gentleman such as himself. When he was done, Kakashi thought that he was supposed to meet Team 7 on the other side of the village. Honest mistake, really. Not even Jounins were perfect, but apparently the little ducklings he had for Genins didn't understand that. Hopefully they would someday... someday.

"Very well, looks like everyone is here. Now, should we start our mission?" Kakashi asked.

"About time we started it! Why are you always late, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked back.

"Because I'm the most unfortunate ninja ever, to be honest. Every time I'm heading to a mission, something gets in my way. The other day, for example, I had this meeting with another fellow Jounin and my alarm clock wouldn't work, so I ended up missing the meeting. There's nothing I can do about it, really."

Shujinko was tempted to say that maybe their sensei was plain lazy, but decided not to. If Kakashi-sensei got offended, he could stop the mission before it began and send his team back to the D-ranks. Shujinko was more than certain that neither him, Naruto, Sakura or Sasuke wanted anything to do with those tremendously boring missions.

As soon as Team 7 stepped out of the gates, Naruto started jumping up and down. "Yeaaaah!"

"Why are you so excited, Naruto?" Sakura questioned him.

"Because this is the first time I'm out of the village! I'm a traveler now, believe it!"

Tazuna snorted at him. "Am I supposed to trust my life to this runt? He's a joke!" he said to Kakashi.

"Don't worry, Tazuna-san. He's with me and I'm a Jounin."

The words 'runt' and 'joke' echoed inside of Naruto's head. He turned around to face the geezer of a client he had to protect. "Hey, never insult a ninja because it's a big mistake! I'm one of the greatest ninja ever! Someday I'm gonna become Hokage and you'll have no choice but to look up to me! My name is Uzumaki Naruto, remember it!"

'One of the greatest ninja ever? Hardly.' Shujinko thought to himself. He didn't look down on Naruto, but neither did he think of him as a great ninja. Confidence was good, but too much confidence could easily turn into arrogance, something that Shujinko despised. Naruto COULD become a great ninja, but right now he simply wasn't. With some time, serious training and hopefully a change of clothes, Naruto could start calling himself an actual shinobi. Shujinko was sure of it.

"The Hokage is someone powerful and wise. You are puny and brainless. The day you become Hokage is the day I'll grow a pair of wings and fly." Tazuna said dismissingly after taking another gulp from his bottle of sake.

"Shut up! I'm willing to do anything to become Hokage, no matter what it takes! And when I do, everyone will have to admit that I'm the top ninja of the village, including you!"

Tazuna sneered at the little brat. "You can become Hokage ten times over for all I care. To me, you'll always be a nobody, a loser."

'That... might have been a little harsh.' Shujinko thought grimly.

With Kakashi holding Naruto so he couldn't 'beat the snot out of the old man', Team 7 started walking towards their new adventure.

None of them noticed the two shadows that were following them.

|1 hour later|

Sakura looked at her team's client. "Tazuna-san?"

"What is it?"

"Your country is Nami no Kuni, right?"

"Yeah, what of it?"

She then faced the silver-haired man that was her sensei. "Kakashi-sensei, there are ninja in Nami no Kuni, right?"

"Actually, no. There are no ninja in Nami no Kuni." Kakashi answered. "But there are other hidden villages in other countries with their own different cultures. To the people of this continent, the existence of shinobi villages means military strength. In other words, that's how they protect themselves and maintain the balance of power with neighboring countries. The ninja villages are not controlled by any government; they're independent and have equal status. Now, a small island like Nami no Kuni gets natural protection from the sea, so there is no need for a ninja village. The five ancient lands that possess shinobi villages are Hi no Kuni, Mizu no Kuni, Kaminari no Kuni, Kaze no Kuni and Tsuchi no Kuni. They each occupy vast territories. Together, they are known as the 'Five Great Shinobi Nations'. Hi no Kuni has Konohagakure no Sato, Mizu no Kuni has Kirigakure no Sato, Kaminari no Kuni has Kumogakure no Sato, Kaze no Kuni has Sunagakure no Sato and Tsuchi no Kuni has Iwagakure no Sato. Only the leaders of these hidden villages are permitted the name 'Kage', which means shadow. Hokage, Mizukage, Raikage, Kazekage and Tsuchikage. These are the leaders, the five shadows that reign over thousands of ninja."

"Ohhh, so Hokage-sama must be very important!" Sakura said in delight. 'Inner Sakura', however, wasn't exactly thinking the same thing. 'CHA! IS THAT OLD MAN REALLY SUCH A BIG DEAL? I'M NOT BUYING IT.'

'I got him with my Oiroke no Jutsu, he can't be that great!' Naruto thought.

'It's kind of hard to believe that a man his age is strong enough to be a leader, especially when you've never seen him fight before.' Shujinko admitted to himself, not out loud of course.

A killing intent that seemed to pour out of their sensei stopped them right in their tracks. "You all just doubted Hokage-sama, didn't you? That's what you were thinking." Kakashi stated. Sakura, Shujinko and Naruto shook their heads, too scared to say anything. "That's good to know. Anyways, you shouldn't worry that much. We shouldn't encounter any foreign ninja to battle in a C-rank. So, you can relax."

For some reason, Shujinko could've thought that Tazuna looked uncomfortable at the mention of 'foreign ninja'. He would normally dismiss that thought, but his eyesight rarely misinterpreted anything, and that man certainly had an awkward, almost guilty expression on his face. But why?

After a while, Team 7 crossed a small wooden bridge. On one side of the path, Shujinko noticed a small puddle. It was sort of strange when taking into consideration that there had been no rain since last week. What was that puddle doing there? In the end, he shrugged his suspicions off and continued to stay focused on his mission. Just a few steps later, Shujinko could've sworn he had heard the sound of metal piercing its way to them. He took a look back and, before he knew it, his sensei was captured by two chains holding on to his body. In an instant, two shinobi wearing black coats and claw-like gauntlets appeared right next to them. The last thing he saw of his sensei before he was shredded to pieces was the shocked expression on his face.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled. But before he could do a thing, the two enemy shinobi were standing behind him, chuckling evilly at the Genin's fear.

"Now it's your turn." one of them said.

Naruto was completely frozen and his body simply couldn't move. All he could do was shake in terror. 'Why... Why can't I move?! They're going to kill me! Damn it Naruto, move! MOVE!' he tried to order himself to no avail.

Sasuke was the first to react. Grabbing a shuriken from his pouch, he jumped and pinned the linked chain to a tree nearby, stopping the attackers from going any further. Next, he pulled out a kunai and threw it to where his shuriken was to make sure the chain wouldn't escape. Landing on the arms of the assassins, Sasuke took advantage of the momentum and kicked them both in their heads.

Adrenaline took over Shujinko's body. Reacting as fast as he could, he grabbed Naruto by his jacket and pulled him away from danger. Jumping back, he saw Sasuke jumping as well to gain some distance from the attackers. Grabbing a handful of kunais, Shujinko threw them at his enemies, but it was too late. They had managed to get loose from the linked chain and now they were making their way to Sakura, who was the only one protecting Tazuna by now.

'I've got to do something!' Sakura mentally yelled. Out of instinct, she grabbed a kunai and made sure her client listened to her. "Stay behind me, Tazuna-san!"

PAAAM PAAAM

The Genins from Team 7 watched in awe how the ninjas were stopped by none other than their sensei, who was holding them by their necks tightly enough to make them lose consciousness. Then, he had the audacity to look at them with his unmistakable bored eye expression. "Hello there."

Sakura gasped out of relief. 'Kakashi-sensei is alive!'

'Hmpf, showoff.' Sasuke thought annoyed.

Shujinko let out a breath he was unaware he was holding up until this moment.

Naruto was gawking, unable to comprehend what his eyes were showing him. "But... Kakashi-sensei was..." he trailed of. Looking back at the spot where the Hatake 'died', he saw that there was no flesh or blood, but a pile of logs instead. "Kawarimi no Jutsu!" he exclaimed in understanding.

"Naruto, sorry I didn't help you right away. I didn't mean for you to get hurt." Kakashi said. "I simply didn't think you would freeze up like that. Sasuke and Shujinko, good job the both of you. Very smooth and good reaction. You as well, Sakura."

'I was useless! No, worse than useless! Sasuke and Shujinko acted so cool, like they've done this a thousand times before. So calm, and not even a single scratch on them. And I was so lame! Shujinko even had to come up and save me like I was some baby. Gah, why can't I keep up with them!? Why are they so much better than me!?' Naruto though in distress. The fact that Shujinko had to take care of him filled every cell of his being with embarrassment and jealousy. He was Uzumaki Naruto! The best ninja in all of Konoha and future Hokage for crying out loud! He was supposed to show those ninja who was the boss, not act like a terrified kid who needed help.

Sasuke turned around and smirked at Naruto. "Oi dobe, you're not hurt are you? Scaredy-cat."

The blonde Genin growled at him. "Sasuke-!"

"Naruto!" Kakashi interrupted the rant of his student. "We need to take care of the wound on your hand quickly. You have been infected with some poison from the gauntlet claws. It's in your blood so don't move around, or else you'll cause the poison to expand."

Because of the heat of the moment, Naruto hadn't realized that he had a big cut on his hand. Now that he looked at it, he paled and gulped.

"By the way, Tazuna-san."

"Y-Yeah?" Tazuna asked somewhat startled.

"After I take care of these two, I need to ask you a couple of questions."

(10 minutes later)

"They are Meizu and Gozu, Chunin from Kirigakure no Sato. Their specialty is relentless attack. They keep fighting no matter what the sacrifice." the one-eyed Jounin stated while the Demon Brothers were immobilized, pinned to a tree.

"How did you know about our attack?" Meizu asked with a glare.

"A puddle on a clear day when it hasn't rained in weeks? I found that to be rather odd."

Shujinko's ears perked up at that. He had noticed the puddle as well, but he would've never deducted that there were enemy shinobi hiding there. Kakashi was certainly a very observant man.

"In that case, why did you leave it for the Genin to do the fighting?" Tazuna asked with narrowed eyes.

"I could've taken them out quickly if I had wanted to, but in that case I would've learned nothing. I had to know who their target was and what they were after." Kakashi responded as he narrowed his only visible eye, giving the bridge builder a look that made him gulp.

"What are you getting at?" Tazuna asked with false courage.

Kakashi stood up and looked at Tazuna straight in the eye. "This. I wanted to know what they were after. Were they after us, the ninjas? Or were they after you, the man that we were protecting. When you put in your request, you asked for standard protection in case you encountered robbers and thieves. But you never said there were ninja after you. That alone makes this mission a B-rank, maybe even an A-rank. Our task was simply to get you to your destination safely and protect you while you finish your bridge. If we knew we would encounter enemy shinobi, we would've labeled this mission as a B-rank and charge you for one. Apparently you have your reasons, but lying to us is not acceptable. As for now, we are officially beyond the scope of this mission."

As he said that, Tazuna could only lower his head in shame. For Shujinko's part, he couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was their first C-rank mission ever, and their client had lied to them? Wow.

"We are Genin, this is too advanced for our level of training. We should go back. And besides, we really need to check Naruto's hand and get the poison out as soon as possible. We can take him to a doctor back at the village." Sakura said, trying to reason with her team. She knew that Kakashi, Sasuke and Shujinko were up to the test, but not her.

"Naruto's hand could become a problem later." Kakashi acknowledge her point. "I guess we should go back to the village."

CLANG

Before any further discussion could be made, Naruto pulled out a kunai and stabbed himself where his wound was. Blood started to pour profusely.

"Why? Why am I so different?" he started to say. "I worked so hard to get here, pushing myself until I got hurt, training alone for hours, anything to get stronger and to reach my dream. I will never back down again and I will never let anyone else rescue me again. I will never run away and I will not lose to Sasuke or Shujinko. Upon this wound I make this pledge, believe it. Bridge-builder, I'll complete this mission and protect you with this kunai. A real ninja never gives up and neither will I. Don't you guys worry about me, I'll be fine. Now let's go!"

...

"Naruto, that was really cool how you got the poison out and all, but you're going to die if you lose any more blood." the cyclops Jounin commented casually.

...

"WHAAAAAAT!? No, no, no, no! I can't die yet, I'm too young! No, no, nooooo!" Naruto started to freak out, jumping from one place to another.

"Then why did you do something so stupid!? Stop acting like an idiotic kid, Naruto!" Shujinko yelled. He liked Naruto and all, but he really knew how to behave like a complete imbecile. It was embarrassing.

"Hnh, usuratonkachi." the last Uchiha said out loud.

"Show me your hand." Kakashi commanded. Taking Naruto's hand, his eye widened as he saw the injury closing. 'The wound is already starting to heal...'

Naruto was trembling like a leaf in the wind. "Kakashi-sensei, you ha-a-a-ave a-a really s-s-serious look o-on your f-f-face. Am I g-going to be-e ok?"

"Huuuh, yeah, you should be alright." the Hatake said as he wrapped Naruto's hand in a medical bandage. 'This must be the Kyuubi no Kitsune's power.'

Shujinko, however, was not convinced at all. While it was not an extremely fatal wound like a stab to the heart, a kunai buried that deep in anyone's hand was definitely a serious injury. There were several veins in the human hand, and if one were to stab himself there, the blood loss could become huge. That was something even Academy students knew. 'So why is Kakashi-sensei so unconcerned? A little bandage isn't gonna cut it.' Shujinko thought as he pulled out a pill from his medical kit. "Oi Naruto, catch."

"Huh? What is this?"

"Eat it. It's a blood pill. It helps you regain a portion of your blood when you get wounded. I only have several of these, so please be careful and stop stabbing yourself."

Smiling sheepishly, Naruto chewed the blood pill and swallowed it. "Aagh! It tastes awful!"

The golden-eyed boy raised an eyebrow. "Well, what were you expecting? Ramen flavor?"

Naruto nodded yes repeatedly. Shujinko sighed.

* * *

Team 7 found themselves on a small boat entering Nami no Kuni. The place was misty, dark and quiet. The only thing that seemed to cause noise was the soft sound of the waves crashing the boat gently. Shujinko couldn't help but stare in awe. The difference between Nami no Kuni and Hi no Kuni was painfully obvious. But as he looked at the waves, he was also wondering about the mission. He felt somewhat guilty, for he was the one that 'requested' the Hokage a C-rank to begin with along with Naruto, arguing that it would make their teamwork stronger.

Shujinko was a strong Genin and he knew it, but he also recognized his limits and weaknesses. Just because he was top of the class along with Sasuke (considered a genius by some) didn't mean that he could face the danger of a B/A-rank mission like it was nothing. He was pretty sure he could deal with thugs, but to battle an actual ninja was a whole different story. If they were going to face another ninja, it certainly was not going to be a friendly spar; it was going to be a battle to the death. That thought scared him even if he didn't want to admit it. At some point he would have to kill and he had come to terms with that. But when he imagined himself burying a kunai into another man's chest and ending his life, he felt shivers going down his spine. The worst thing of all was that, in his line of job, it was more than likely to happen.

Then there was that business with Tazuna. That bastard had pulled him, his teammates and his sensei into a big problem. Either quit the mission or keep going on with unexpected troubles on the road. Quitting their first C-rank mission would certainly leave a bad word on their history, even if it was a completely understandable decision. Their client had lied to them, after all. Any Hokage would understand why a fresh new team of Genins would abandon their first C-rank after they discovered it was going to be a B-rank or maybe even an A-rank. They simply were not experienced enough.

On the other hand, foul rumors would undoubtedly spread around if they quit the mission. People in the village were gossipy (specially the civilians), and gossips always left out important pieces of information. Team 7 would be seen as a bunch of heartless ninja who left a poor master bridge-builder on their own because of an unexpected attack. That would lead the clients to choose any team but team 7, which would lead them to a poor record of missions, not enough experience to try harder ones and probably tension and mistrust between them and their future clients. Shujinko was aware that maybe he was exaggerating in his speculations, but if you wanted to be a ninja, you needed to think ahead of the situation and imagine all the possible scenarios you might get involved, like a player of Shogi thinking about what his next move should be and how his opponent would retaliate.

That was how Shujinko's mind worked. Get information, evaluate the situation, make a decision, repeat if necessary.

That meant that he needed to get all the information he could before letting his team know his verdict, or more exactly his thoughts on the mission. Whatever he might think, it was his sensei the one who decided if they kept going or retreated.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Shujinko asked in a low tone, gaining the attention of the Jounin. "I think it's time we discuss the mission."

Sasuke, who had been quiet all the way (no surprise there), was thinking among the same lines as his rival. His decision was very simple, however. He would go for the path that would bring him the more challenges. The sudden turn of events had made the apparently dull and simple C-rank into something more... interesting, and he was determined to follow whatever option that could make him stronger than yesterday. He couldn't care less for Tazuna and his bridge, but he did care about what opportunities might appear by following the mission.

Kakashi gave his student a small nod. "I agree. Is there anything you might want to tell us, Tazuna-san?"

Tazuna let out a tired sigh. He knew it would come to this at some point, but he couldn't help but feel dreadful all the same. "I believe there's no point in hiding anything from you guys any longer. I'm not going to mess around. There's an extremely terrible man after me."

"An extremely terrible man?"

"Yes. You should at least heard of the name: Gatou."

Kakashi's only visible eye widened in clear surprise. "You mean Gatou, the billionaire from the Gatou Company? He's one of the wealthiest individuals in the world."

'Oh my, this is just perfect.' Shujinko thought sarcastically. If it weren't for the seriousness of the situation and because it would've looked highly unprofessional, he would've slapped his forehead. 'Why, from all of the available C-ranks we could've go for, did Hokage-sama have to choose this one for us?'

Naruto was clueless (once again, no surprise there). "Huh? Gatou? Who is he?"

"Gatou is the president of a marine transportation company on the outside, but underground he uses gangs and ninjas to smuggle drugs and contraband goods. He also does nasty jobs such as takeovers of other companies and countries. A year ago, he set his sight on Nami no Kuni. He entered this country using violence and wealth as his shield, and he quickly took over the island's sea traffic and transportation. On an island like Nami no Kuni, controlling the sea is equal to ruling over the wealth, politics and people of this island. And the one thing that Gatou is afraid of is the completion of the bridge that has been under construction for some time now. The bridge that I am building."

"I see." Sakura said as she let the information sink in. "That means that you, as the master bridge-builder, became an obstacle to him."

"Then those missing-nins were sent by Gatou." Sasuke concluded.

Shujinko shook his head. "But I don't get it. Why did you kept this from us? Don't you think this information would've been vital for us?"

"Nami no Kuni is a really poor country. Even the feudal lord doesn't have much money, and we certainly don't have much. We don't have enough money to request an expensive B-rank or above mission. If you choose to quit the mission after we land, I'll be killed for sure on my way home." Tazuna said casually. Then his tone changed to one much more innocent. "But there's no need to blame yourselves. "Only my cute, eight year-old grandson will cry and cry and cry some more. Also, my daughter will bear a grudge against Konoha ninjas for the rest of her life. But then again, it won't be your fault. At all." he added shamelessly.

The brown haired boy was both awestruck and furious. Not only did Tazuna lie to them, but now he used his family as leverage against them. The fact that Tazuna's young grandson reminded him of Nanami didn't make things better, either.

In the end, Kakashi scratched the back of his head. "Well, I guess we don't have much of a choice. The mission goes on."

"Thank you." Tazuna said with a grin. 'Alright, I'm saved!' he thought with glee.

Shujinko lost it. Seeing that man smile like there was nothing wrong made him even angrier than before. 'Screw being professional.' "Oi, Tazuna." he called, dropping the 'san' suffix.

"Yeah?"

"Just to let you know, I have a family waiting for me back home. I told them that nothing was going to happen to me on this mission. Nanami, my seven year-old sister, cried simply because I had to leave her for a week or two. Now, if I die on this mission because of you, how do you think they will feel?" Shujinko asked in a tone so cold it was unnerving. Two can play the game of guilt. Tazuna's grin faltered and tried to come up with an answer, but Shujinko wouldn't let him. "My sister adores me, you know? She just started going to the Academy with hopes of becoming just like her big brother. I suppose that, if I die here, she will drop the Academy because I won't be able to watch over her."

Now Tazuna could barely speak. "... I'm sorry."

"No, you're not. I mean, you already have what you want, don't you? We are still going to protect you, even though I wouldn't mind if you dropped dead right now. But don't worry, it won't be your fault if I die. Only my parents will be torn apart and my sister will never be the same. But then again, it won't be your fault. At all."

Now Tazuna was drowning in guilt. He wisely decided to stay quiet for the rest of the trip.

* * *

Sorry for the long wait. I haven't been able to get any internet connection, and I have to make the chapters following the Naruto episodes. I know this might be a little short, but I want to make the next chapter all about the fight with Zabuza.

Thank you for reading. Any tip or suggestion is highly appreciated.

Ja ne!


	5. Chapter 5 (part 2)

**CHAPTER 5: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 2)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

* * *

"This is as far as I can go." the boat driver said as they landed on a dock located in a small fishing village. Team 7 and Tazuna climbed out of the boat and Shujinko understood within seconds what Tazuna said to them earlier about Nami no Kuni being poor. The village was dirty and full of garbage, and the houses, if one could call them houses, looked way too fragile. They seemed like they could barely sustain their own weight. Shujinko was willing to bet that a properly done C-rank Fuuton jutsu would probably destroy around half of the village houses. Not even the shadiest parts of Konoha were this miserable.

"I understand. Thank you for taking such a risk." Tazuna replied truthfully. Even transporting people to the land under Gatou's presence was dangerous nowadays.

The boatman nodded. "Just be careful." he said. Turning on the boat's engine, he parted away.

"My home is this way. Please follow me."

To Team 7's relief, the mist that had once adorned the atmosphere was gone and the sun was now shining. They left the fishing village in a matter of minutes and now they had reached the forest that led to Tazuna's house. Shujinko couldn't help but feel on constant alert. The earlier attack they endured against the Demon Brothers made him realize just how focused he should really be if he wanted to survive this mission. Sure, they had Kakashi with them but if he continued to rely on him too much, he would never grow into a proper shinobi. After all, he wouldn't always have his teammates or his sensei to back him. Teamwork was fundamental, but so were a ninja's own skills.

On their way, Kakashi was in deep thought. 'Next time they come for us, they won't send a couple of Chunins. Our next encounter will most likely be with a Jounin, a ninja with great abilities. I need to be careful now.'

Meanwhile, Naruto was glaring at Sasuke and walking faster than the rest, making sure that he was 'leading' the group. 'I am not gonna let either Sasuke or Shujinko take the glory this time. Believe it!' Naruto started to look around for any strange sign. When something caught his sight, he grabbed a kunai from his pouch and threw it into a bush nearby. "Over there!" he yelled.

Nothing happened.

"Tch, it was just a mouse."

"Just a mouse? Yeah right! Stop trying to act cool, baka! You're so obvious it's embarrassing!" Sakura shouted, clearly annoyed.

"Naruto, that's a kunai. It's a dangerous weapon." Kakashi scolded him.

Sasuke just let out one of his infamous 'hnh's'.

Tazuna was more than furious. "STOP TRYING TO SCARE ME YOU DAMN TWERP!"

"Hey, is somebody hiding over there? No! I think he's over there!" Naruto ranted, looking everywhere. He couldn't help it. He simply had to prove to his team that he was a ninja worthy of becoming Hokage, not to mention that the memory of freezing out of fear when the Demon Brothers attacked still haunted him. "Or maybe... over there!"

Another kunai was thrown by the blonde Genin, earning himself a smack on the head, courtesy of Sakura. While Naruto rubbed his head and whined, both Shujinko and Kakashi went to inspect at what Naruto had thrown the kunai at. Close to the tree, a snow-white rabbit lay, almost shocked to death. The kunai was embedded deeply into a tree, just inches away from the abused animal.

'So there was something nearby.' Shujinko thought. At least it was just a rabbit and not a dangerous creature.

"All that fuss over a rodent?" Tazuna questioned no one in particular.

No one noticed how Kakashi was frowning. 'That's a snow rabbit.' he thought. 'They only have that fur during winter, when the days are short and there is little sunlight. This rabbit was raised far away from here and I can only think of one reason why: a replacement jutsu. That means they're already here.'

And then, the sound of metal cutting its way through the wind was heard.

"Look out! To the ground!"

Luckily, the Genins reacted quickly enough with Shujinko pulling Tazuna to the ground as a huge weapon passed by. Had Shujinko not grabbed Tazuna and pushed him to the ground, the master bridge-builder would've lost his head. The huge weapon turned out to be a sword bigger than any Shujinko had ever seen. The sword imbedded itself to a tree, and a man was standing on its handle. The man wore grey baggy pants along with arm sleeves with a camouflaged pattern and shinobi sandals. His headband was placed on the left side of his forehead. Half his face was covered in bandages, similar to Kakashi. His spiky, dark hair combined with the color of his skin. The man stared at them but said nothing.

'Here it is, my time to shine! I am not going to lose to Sasuke-teme or Shujinko.' Naruto thought with a devilish smile.

"Well, well. If it isn't Momochi Zabuza, rogue ninja from Kirigakure no Sato." Kakashi said taking a step forward.

'Rogue ninja? Whatever, nothing is going to stop me!' Naruto thought. 'Ready? Go!'

Naruto started to run against the man, but Kakashi stopped him. "You're in the way. Get back."

"But why-"

"Naruto, just get over here. Our top priority is to protect Tazuna-san, not engage his enemies." Shujinko said with a calm, yet tense voice.

"Shujinko is right." Kakashi said. "And besides, this one is not like the others. No, this one is in a whole different league."

Zabuza let out his rough and intimidating voice. "I suppose you're Hatake Kakashi, the Sharingan user I've heard so much about."

Sasuke let out a loud gasp, Shujinko's eyes widened, Sakura looked at her sensei in awe and Naruto merely raised his eyebrow. Then, much to the Genins' surprise, their sensei reached for the left side of his headband that covered his eye. Shujinko had always thought that he kept his left eye covered because he had lost it at some point in his shinobi career. It made sense considering that the life of a ninja was full of danger. Maybe that was the reason Kakashi wore his facial mask, because it was full of scars. At least that was what Shujinko thought, but he honestly had no idea why Kakashi covered his face so much. Maybe his sensei was just plain ugly? He didn't know.

'If I am going to fight an opponent of this level, I'll be needing this.'

And then, Kakashi lifted the left side of his headband, revealing not just a vertical scar, but an eye as well. The eye, however, was not black like its right partner, but red with three tomoes surrounding it.

'Gah! What's wrong with his eye?' Naruto thought as he took a step back.

"Looks like I get to see the Sharingan in action. I feel quite lucky." Zabuza said as he glanced at the red eye. Shujinko could see the predatory smirk that was being covered by the man's bandages.

Shujinko glanced at Sasuke, who was very well beyond shock. He knew perfectly well why Sasuke was feeling that way.

|Flashback|

 _The top two students of the class were taking a short break after several sparring sessions. These spars consisted in all-out battles with everything included: Taijutsu, Genjutsu (though this one was more than tricky as neither of them could use it in battle effectively), Ninjutsu, strategy and use of all their shinobi tools. The idea was to simulate a real fight and find areas that might need improvement. Shujinko and Sasuke (especially Sasuke) had both agreed to have these encounters in secluded areas, where the sound of squealing fangirls wouldn't be an issue. The two boys would usually bring their own beverages over, water for Shujinko and tomato juice for Sasuke._

 _"Oi, Sasuke." Shujinko called after taking a sip of his water. "I've been meaning to ask you something. I know the Sharingan is (he would've normally say 'was', but he thought Sasuke could take it the wrong way) the Uchiha Kekkei Genkai, but I've never understood what's capable of. Do you mind sharing some information?"_

 _The raven-haired boy narrowed his eyes. "Why do you want to know about the Sharingan?"_

 _Shujinko shrugged. "For the sake of knowledge, maybe? I don't know, I just find it intriguing."_

 _To reveal secrets of the Sharingan was no small deal. Even when the Uchiha were alive, Sasuke could remember how everyone was strictly told not to talk about the Sharingan with comrades other than themselves. Uchiha Fugaku thought that the other clans knew enough about their eyes and he intended to keep it that way. After all, the Sharingan was the pride of the Uchiha, the reason why they were the elite of the village and the reason they were the strongest around. Sasuke was about to deny the petition, but something made him think otherwise. He still hadn't awoken his Sharingan, so it wasn't of much importance if he gave out bits of information._

 _And so, Sasuke ended up telling Shujinko about some of the things the Uchiha Kekkei Genkai could do. Shujinko listened carefully, trying not to show how impressed he actually was with the Sharingan. It was no wonder the Uchiha became Konoha's Military Police Force and the village's most iconic clan. Of course, Sasuke didn't tell him all the abilities of the Sharingan eye. He didn't want his rival to have an upper hand against him once he had awoken his family's legacy._

|Flashback end|

"Quick! Four-man Manji formation, now! Protect the bridge-builder and stay out of this fight. I taught you teamwork, and now is the time to use it." Kakashi commanded.

Zabuza chuckled. "Very well, Kakashi of the Sharingan. Let's see how much fun you can make things."

Naruto couldn't stand it anymore. "Geez, everyone's talking about Sharingan this and Sharingan that, but can someone please tell me what exactly is the Sharingan?"

Surprisingly enough, Sasuke was the one that spoke up. "The Sharingan is a rare power that resides in the eyes. The user of this Dojutsu will be able to instantly see and comprehend any type of Taijutsu, Genjutsu or Ninjutsu, as well as reflect the attack back on the attacker. However, there is more to the Sharingan than that, a lot more."

Now it was Zabuza's turn to speak. "You got it right boy, but that's only the beginning. The Sharingan can copy your enemy's moves to the smallest detail." he said.

Right after finishing his sentence, mist started to appear out of nowhere. "As for you Jounin, I've had my eyes on you for quite a while. I recently picked a Bingo Book to see if you were still out there, and I was right. Just so you brats know, the man you have for a sensei is called 'the shinobi who has copied over a thousand jutsus. Kakashi the Copy-Ninja.'"

Shujinko looked at his sensei absolutely stunned. He would've never have guessed Kakashi was that much of a big deal. Sure, he was aware that his sensei was strong, but not to that level. 'When this is over, I'll definitely have to talk with Kakashi-sensei. He's much more interesting than I thought.'

"Wow, that's so cool!" Naruto yelled out loud.

'But the Sharingan is an ability possessed only by members of the Uchiha clan, my clan.' Sasuke thought as he inspected the Hatake. 'Could he...?'

"Enough talk. I need that old man dead." the cold voice of Zabuza interrupted Sasuke's train of thought. "Now..." the Genins quickly responded by surrounding Tazuna, forming a four-man wall with each one of them holding a kunai. Hatake Kakashi was standing right in front of them. "Looks like I'll have to deal with you first, eh Kakashi? So be it."

With that said, Zabuza jumped out of his spot and did something none of the Genins expected him to do, or even believed to be possible: He stood on top of the water of the lake next to them. Using a strange hand sign, the swordsman started gathering a huge amount of chakra.

"Ninpou: Kirigakure no Jutsu!"

The mist expanded itself to the point where Shujinko could no longer see anything further than three meters away. His enemy was nowhere to be seen. He could only hold his kunai tighter while trying to keep his breathing in check.

"S-Sensei..." Sakura called out.

"He'll come after me first." Kakashi replied.

"But... who is he?"

"Momochi Zabuza, the ex-leader of Kirigakure's Assasination Unit. He is a master of the 'silent killing' technique."

Naruto gulped. "S-Silent?"

Kakashi nodded. "Just as the name suggests, it happens in an instant, without sound or warning of any kind. It's so fast you die without noticing. Not even the Sharingan can fully neutralize it, so don't lower your guard."

...

"Well, if we fail, we only lose our lives."

"How can you say that!?" Sakura reprimanded her sensei.

"The mist is getting thicker and thicker!" Naruto said as he took notice of his surroundings.

"Nami no Kuni is surrounded by the ocean." Tazuna explained. "Here, the mist is as normal as the clouds in the sky."

Much to Team 7's displeasure, the mist became so thick they could barely see anything. Kakashi was now invisible to them, which made the Genins to move closer to each other out of fear. Shujinko was now sweating. The anxiousness was getting the better of him every passing second. This... This was the kind of thing you couldn't learn from books or by listening to Iruka back at the Academy classes. This was the kind of things only real life could ever show you, and real life could be the hardest sensei a shinobi could ever learn from. The only thing keeping him from freaking out was the fact that Kakashi was with them and his breathing method. The breathing method was a basic skill taught in the Academy for the purpose of lowering a shinobi's stress amount in the middle of a battle. Shujinko never would've thought he would be using it in a C-rank. How ironic.

"Eight points..." a hidden voice whispered loud enough for the Genins and Tazuna to hear. "Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidneys and heart. Now, which one will be my attack point?"

Kakashi responded by doing a Ram handsign and started gathering chakra.

'I... I feel like I can't breathe.' Sasuke thought as he started shaking uncontrollably. 'One shallow breath... One tiny movement of my eye and that man will attack me. It's suffocating! If I keep like this I'll go insane. The clash of two Jounin-level shinobis and their killing intent... It's like my life can be taken away from me at any moment... No, I can't take it anymore. I-I rather...'

"Sasuke, calm down. I will protect you with my life, all of you." Kakashi said, then turned around and gave them an eye-smile. "I won't allow my comrades to die. That is absolute."

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that."

Shujinko's eyes went wide. That was Zabuza's voice.

And it came from behind.

"It's over."

In less than a second, Kakashi spun around, fixed his Sharingan on Zabuza and buried a kunai into the man's stomach. The Genins took a couple of steps back, visibly startled by the speed of Kakashi's reaction. Blood started to pour out of Zabuza's wound, or so did Shujinko thought at first. Taking a good look, he realized that it wasn't blood that was pouring out of the swordsman, but water. A figure appeared behind the Hatake.

"Sensei, behind you!" Naruto yelled.

Turns out that 'Zabuza' was nothing but a Mizu Bunshin, a water clone. Kakashi looked back just in time to see the real Zabuza slicing him in two. But just like Zabuza's clone, 'Kakashi's' body was also made out of water. 'Mizu Bunshin as well? It can't be!' Zabuza shouted inside his head. 'Even in the mist he saw through my illusion and copied it in an instant.'

Then, the skin of his neck was greeted by the cold and unforgiving metal of a kunai.

"Don't move. Now it's over. You're finished."

...

Naruto was the first to react. "Wow! Kakashi-sensei, that was so cool!"

Shujinko let out a big sigh of relief. Kakashi certainly was a man of resources and outstanding abilities. It made him wonder just how much he could learn from him. He was starting to see his sensei in a whole new light since the attack of the Demon Brothers, because he was the living definition of a shinobi: Observant, quick-thinking, strategic, skilled, collected in the face of danger and deadly. Shujinko, who had always dreamed about being an outstanding ninja, couldn't help but stare in awe at his sensei. It also made him realize he still had a long way to go before achieving his goal, very much like Naruto's objective of becoming Hokage one day and have the respect, admiration and acknowledgement of every ninja and civilian of Konohagakure.

For no apparent reason, Zabuza chuckled. "Finished? You really don't get it, do you? Your technique is nothing but an imitation. I'll never be defeated by a copy-cat like you. You are full of surprises, I'll give you that. You were able to copy my jutsu in the middle of your speech. Very skillfully executed. You made your clone say those words to draw my attention while you were in the mist waiting for me to make my move. Nice try, but I'm not that easy to fool."

The moment he finished talking, another Zabuza was behind Kakashi. And this time, it was the real one.

"Kakashi-sensei, that was a clone too!" Sakura shouted. Just when she thought she had regained some of her security...

Kakashi was about to be chopped in two, but ducked at the last moment. Zabuza took advantage of his position and kicked the silver-haired man so hard he sent him flying away into the lake. By the time that Kakashi's head and shoulders were out of the water, Zabuza was already behind him making hand signs.

"What a fool. Suiton: Suirō no Jutsu!"

The Jounin's body was immediately surrounded by a spinning water sphere with Zabuza's hand in it in order to keep the technique going by supplying a constant and controlled flow of chakra. The Hatake couldn't believe the situation he had gotten himself into. He knew this jutsu all too well, and escaping from it with no help from the outside was something extremely hard. He had left his Genins unattended and claimed victory far too early, and he had paid the price of his mistake.

"This prison is made of water stronger than steel." the swordsman informed him. "It's hard to fight when you can't move, wouldn't you agree? So much for the famous Hatake Kakashi. I'll finish you off once those brats are out of the way. Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu." and another clone was made out of a puddle. "You think you can call yourselves shinobi just by wearing those headbands? Pathetic. The only ones who might be able to call themselves shinobi are the ones that have seen the face of death so many times it doesn't even faze them. When you become so deadly that your profiles appear in my Bingo book, then I might consider you as a true ninja, not a minute earlier. The fact that you call yourselves ninja is nothing but an unfunny joke to me." he said before disappearing once more into the mist.

Before Naruto could react, Zabuza appeared right in front of him and kicked him in the gut. Naruto was sent flying a couple of meters to the ground. Thankfully, he had no broken ribs, but there was something missing.

His headband was being stomped on by Zabuza. "You are nothing but kids."

"Listen to me! Get the bridge-builder and run! You can't win this fight!" Kakashi yelled to his team. "He's using all of his power to keep me in his water prison, so he can only fight you with his clone. But his clone can't go much farther away from his real body. If you get away now, his clone won't be able to follow you. Now run!"

'Run away? Not an option. The idea of running away became unadvisable the moment Kakashi got caught. No matter how fast we run or how far we go, he'll track us down and wipe us out. If we try the Manji formation, he'll get past it just like before. In the end, if we do what he says, we're finished. Our only chance of survival is to rescue Kakashi.' Sasuke thought.

Shujinko was also evaluating his chances. 'We could try to run away, but that clone is definitely faster than us. Even if we are able to outrun him, there's no way Tazuna can keep up with us. He would end up killed, meaning that we would fail the mission. The clone must be weaker than the original Zabuza, but I seriously doubt that we can take him out. Kakashi-sensei is the only one that stands a chance against him, but he's trapped inside that water prison. The only chance we have is to make as much time as we can so Zabuza uses all of his chakra and release Kakashi-sensei, but that clone won't make it easy for us. The only option left is to force Zabuza into releasing Kakashi-sensei.' he concluded. He was thankful he was able to think clearly in a time like this.

But before he could come up with a plan, Sasuke started to run towards the clone. Jumping in the middle of his race, Sasuke pulled out several shurikens and threw them at 'Zabuza'. The clone swatted them away with the use of his sword. As he descended from his jump, Sasuke attempted to stab the clone with a kunai. 'Zabuza' snorted at him. "This is too easy." he said before grabbing Sasuke by his throat and tossing him away.

"Sasuke-kun, no!" Sakura shouted, absolutely terrified at the prospect of having her love interest critically wounded.

"Sasuke, don't go against him without help! There's no way we can defeat him alone!" Shujinko yelled at his teammate. 'Sasuke must be under a lot of pressure. He's usually a lot more strategic and a lot less straight-forward than this.'

Naruto stared at Sasuke and then back to Zabuza, who seemed to be towering against him. 'So this is what a Jounin is like.' he thought as his body was trembling. 'I-I gotta get away! If I don't, he's seriously going to annihilate me!'

But the moment his left hand touched ground, his gaze met the sight of his bandaged hand where his wound once was.

His own words echoed inside his head.

 _'Upon this wound I make this pledge, believe it.'_

 _'I will never back down again and I will never let anyone else rescue me again.'_

 _'I will never run away and I will not lose to Sasuke or Shujinko.'_

 _'I'm not the little brat who used to pull pranks all the time! I'm a ninja now and I want a ninja mission!'_

 _'My dream is to be the greatest Hokage! Then, the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I'm somebody, somebody important!'_

'That's right.' he thought. 'I swore an oath of pain. I won't run away!' Naruto roared as he charged against the clone.

"Naruto, don't go as well!" Shujinko yelled. It was useless. Naruto kept on going until he was close to the clone. The clone punched him back to where he once was like it was nothing.

"Baka, what do you think you're doing!? Not even Sasuke-kun could get to him! We are only Genin, we can't defeat a Jounin! You could've got yourself killed!" Sakura screeched. She would've continued to do so, but as Naruto struggled to get up, she noticed something in his hand. 'The headband? That's what he wanted?'

"Hey you... freak with no eyebrows." Naruto called out, making Zabuza's eye twitch at the insult. "Put this in your Bingo Book. The ninja that will become Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato is standing right in front of you. He never backs down, and his name... is Uzumaki Naruto!"

Everyone went quiet after the statement. Even Tazuna found some form of respect for the kid he had once considered an annoying brat louder than a banshee. 'I thought he was all talk, but he actually has some guts.'

Shujinko, who had stayed quiet for some time now, suddenly smirked. "Oi Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, I have a plan."

The blonde Genin let out a wide grin. "About time if you ask me. I'm ready. Let's bring this guy down."

Zabuza laughed at the kid's ingenuity. "I don't care what kind of plan you have in mind. I'll rip you apart all the same."

"What do you think you're doing!? I told you to run! This fight was over the moment I got caught, so take off!" Kakashi's frightened voice came out. "Your mission is not to prove how brave you are, it's to save the bridge-builder! Stay on mission!"

Naruto looked back at Tazuna. "Bridge-builder?"

"Well, I guess this all happened because of me, because of my desire to live. But I won't let that stand in your way now. Forget about me and do what you have to do. Go ahead and fight to get your sensei." Tazuna responded.

Shujinko smiled. He was beginning to hate Tazuna just a tiny bit less. "You heard him, Kakashi-sensei. Besides, those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum. That was the first thing you've taught us. If you want to scold us later, you're free to do so. But first, we are getting you out of there."

Zabuza started to laugh once more. "You really don't get it, do you? Still playing your little game, pretending to be a shinobi. When I was your age, my hands had already crushed many opponents."

Kakashi glared at the man. "Zabuza, Kiri's Demon..." he muttered. "Long ago, in Kirigakure no Sato, also known as the 'Bloody Kiri', there was a final task one had to do in order to become a ninja."

"You also know about the Graduation Exam?"

"What Graduation Exam? And what's so special about it? We had a Graduation Exam as well." Naruto said.

"Is that so? And did you have to kill another student to pass?" Zabuza asked back with a psychotic smile on his face, shocking the Genins. "Just imagine, ninja like you eating together, training together, and then comes the final exam. Only the rules change. You can't stop until your opponent is finished. It is him or you."

"That's so cruel." Sakura whispered as she held her hands together, tears threatening to run down her cheeks.

Shujinko tried not to show it, but deep down he was mortified. What if Konoha was the same as Kiri? Would he have to kill Sasuke, Naruto or Sakura in order to become a ninja?

"A couple of years ago in Kirigakure no Sato, the Graduation Exam had to change." Kakashi said. "One year before, a dark evil came to the Academy. Without any pause or hesitation, a young boy who was not even a ninja approached the class and took down over a hundred other students."

Zabuza stared into the sky, sighing wistfully. "That... was one of the best days of my life."

Shujinko cringed at the realization. The dark evil Kakashi was talking about was the same man in front of him! He himself had been hesitating about the idea of killing for the first time, and Zabuza had already killed dozens of people before he was even a ninja? What kind of sick monster was he? Not wanting to be in the presence of such a foul creature any longer, Shujinko spoke up. "Naruto, when I give the signal, use your signature jutsu and attack the clone. Make around thirty of them to be sure. Sasuke, when the time is right, perform the last maneuver we have been working on during our last training session. Don't miss the target."

Seeing both his teammates nodding in understanding, Shujinko started to run towards the Demon of Kirigakure.

* * *

Aaaaaand it's a cliffhanger. Not a lot of action in this one, but It will have to do for now. Is the chapter well-written? Anything I should add or remove? Feel free to say.

Ja ne!


	6. Chapter 6 (part 3)

**CHAPTER 6: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 3)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking."

'Thinking.'

"Jutsu."

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

* * *

Shujinko jumped high into the air and proceeded to bombard the water clone in front of him with every shuriken and kunai he had in his pouch and holsters. 'Zabuza' merely used his sword to defend himself, not even bothering to consider the little Genin attacking him as a possible threat. As he descended from his jump, Shujinko made the Monkey handsign. "Naruto, do it now!"

"Alright! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto exclaimed. Thirty Narutos appeared and went to attack the clone. 'Zabuza', although strong and powerful for a clone, still had difficulty dealing with the overwhelming number of clones that were ganging up on him. In the end, the water clone let out a roar and pushed all of Naruto's clones back at once, making them 'poof' out of existence.

"Doton: Iwadeppo no Jutsu!"

The water clone had just enough time to see the golden-eyed brat opening his mouth. A second later, the kid started to shoot rock projectiles out of his mouth. The real Zabuza narrowed his eyes. He knew that jutsu from his encounters with some Iwa nins, and the effect that the technique could have if done correctly was devastating. If his clone got shot with one of those rocks, it would most likely be the end of him. Fortunately, none of the rocks were able to hit him as the water clone stepped out of the line of fire. Besides, the jutsu lacked some fire-power and accuracy.

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled as he threw his teammate a Fuuma Shuriken.

Sasuke caught the weapon effortlessly and turned around. His eyes were fixed on the clone. 'All is going according to the plan. Good.' "Fuuma Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows!"

The raven-haired boy threw the Fuuma Shuriken as hard as he could, making sure that the weapon was sent directly at the real Zabuza. Zabuza laughed to himself. 'Interesting. The whole thing was a distraction. They made sure my clone wasn't in the way so he couldn't stop the Fuuma Shuriken. They already know I can't move without releasing Kakashi, so they thought I would be defenseless without my clone guarding me. Not a bad plan, but...' "You can't hope to defeat me with that."

When the weapon was a few meters away from its target, Zabuza raised his hand and caught the Fuuma Shuriken by the handle, making the weapon stop dead in its track. His eyes widened as another Fuuma Shuriken was making its way to him, one that none of the Genin had thrown. 'A second shuriken hidden in the shadow of the first? So the whole plan was to incapacitate me and then use the Kage Shuriken no Jutsu to hit my real body.' Zabuza thought as the incoming weapon was getting closer and closer. He had to admit, the plan was certainly ingenious and well-made. Had he been another shinobi, those brats might have caught him.

But he wasn't just some shinobi. He was Momochi Zabuza, and Momochi Zabuza was not someone who would let a bunch of green Genins get the better of him.

When the second shuriken was a meter away, Zabuza jumped and the weapon went underneath him. "I already told you that you can't defeat me with that!"

He failed to notice the smirk on Sasuke and Shujinko's faces.

The second Shuriken 'poofed' and was replaced with the sight of Naruto holding a kunai. "Eat this, you psycho!"

Naruto threw the kunai with every ounce of strength he had. It was only in that exact moment when Zabuza realized the cold and hard truth. He had been fooled, deceived by mere Genins that were soiling their clothes out of fear not too long ago. Moving out of instinct, Zabuza pulled his hand out of the water prison so he could dodge the kunai going his way. Even though he managed to avoid a fatal wound, the kunai came so close to him that it made a cut in his cheek.

Absolutely enraged by the fact that the blonde brat managed to catch him off-guard, the swordsman started to spin the Fuuma Shuriken he had stopped a minute ago with the clear intention of killing 'the future Hokage'. "I'll destroy you!"

CLANG

Before Kiri's Demon could make his move, the shuriken was stopped by Kakashi's metal plate on his right glove. The Hatake reacted just in time, and even if he was somewhat weakened by the water prison and the constant use of his Sharingan, his determination was unbreakable right now. Blood started to come out of his hand, but he couldn't care less about that. His Sharingan eye met Zabuza's obscure gaze. Naruto landed in the lake nearby unharmed.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura yelled, relieved to see her sensei out of the water prison for good. Now that Kakashi was with them, the odds of surviving increased by leaps and bounds.

"Shujinko, that was an outstanding plan. Naruto and Sasuke, excellent execution. You three really have grown, haven't you?" Kakashi asked rhetorically, pride evident in his voice despite the situation.

Naruto laughed as he sheepishly scratched the back of his head in slight embarrassment. He was not used to being praised. "I knew I couldn't beat the clone with mine, so instead I just distracted him long enough for Shujinko to get him to move out of the way. When the water clone wasn't looking, I transformed myself into the Fuuma Shuriken and made one of my clones throw me to Sasuke. He could tell it was me in a second. He spun around so no one could see and pulled another Fuuma Shuriken. Now there were two shurikens, one was real and the other was me. I hid in the shadow of the real shuriken, and since the clone was out of the way, he couldn't stop or even notice that there was a second weapon all along. I never wanted to hit the real Zabuza, I just wanted to break his water prison. But I didn't know his water clone would disappear as well. That was a bonus, believe it!"

"Hnh, don't brag about it dobe. You were plain lucky." Sasuke commented, although the smirk on his face was still there.

"It was either luck, or maybe just a well-thought plan." Shujinko retorted proudly. On the outside he looked calm, like a man staring approvingly at a self-made piece of work, but on the inside he was bouncing up and down in pure giddiness. His strategic mind just gave Team 7 its sensei back. He felt like a true shinobi, rising up to the challenge using his intelligence and his observation skills to the point of outsmarting a foe tons of times stronger and more experienced than him. If that wasn't a clear example of skills, then he had no idea what was.

"So the whole thing was just a fluke?" Tazuna questioned.

'You can call it a fluke, but their teamwork was flawless. They knew exactly what to do simply by sharing a few words. Naruto and Sasuke-kun act like they hate each other most of the time, yet they make a splendid team along with Shujinko.' Sakura thought amazed. She, who prided herself of being the 'Kunoichi of the Year' and the smartest girl of her class, couldn't have thought of a better plan.

Zabuza spoke up. "Looks like I got distracted by that kunai earlier, making me lose my grip on the water prison."

The Hatake snorted at him. "Don't flatter yourself. You weren't distracted, you were forced to let go. Your technique worked on me once, but I assure you it won't happen again. So, what's it going to be?"

With a visible vein on his temple, Zabuza started to add more strength into his grip of the Fuuma Shuriken. Both Jounins were now struggling for dominance, and after a brief moment, Kakashi tossed it away. In an instant, both adversaries jumped back and as they gained more distance from each other, Zabuza made the first handsign. Kakashi's Sharingan eye widened as he knew where his opponent was going. The moment they reached the surface of the lake, they started to do a series of hand signs practically in unison. Shujinko, who had never seen the Sharingan in action before, was awestruck at how perfectly Kakashi copied Zabuza's hand signs. In fact, Shujinko was willing to bet that he wasn't copying his movements anymore, because copying involved doing the same thing another one did AFTER he actually did it. His sensei was doing the same thing at the same time, just like a mirror. Yes, Kakashi had just become a mirror.

Then, after what it felt like forty or something hand signs, both Jounin stopped at the bird seal. "Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!"

Water started to rise around their feet, and before Shujinko's mind could tell him what was going on, two massive dragons made out of water appeared and crashed into one another, sending waves of water in every direction. Shujinko struggled to stay on his feet as the wave splashed him and his friends. 'That jutsu was incredible! I've never seen anything like that before.'

'So many hand signs and he copied them all perfectly and at the same time.' Sasuke thought frantically. 'The power of the Sharingan is incredible.'

As Zabuza struggled to gain terrain against the Copy-Ninja, his gut was telling him that there was something fishy going on with the Hatake's red eye. 'Something isn't right. The Sharingan is able to comprehend and replicate the enemy's technique, but our jutsus were launched at the same time. How did he knew what jutsu I was going to use? Could it be that...' To prove his theory, Zabuza suddenly stepped back with Kakashi doing the same. For no apparent reason, Kiri's Demon started running around in circles, and Kakashi was doing just that and even stopping at the same time he did. Just to be sure, Zabuza made a random hand sign to see if his opponent would do the same one. His suspicions proved to be correct as the Hatake made the very same hand sign he was doing.

Even Tazuna, who had no experience or knowledge about ninja techniques whatsoever, understood what was happening. "He's not just following him, he's moving the same way at the same time. You shinobi sure have some interesting abilities."

Meanwhile, Zabuza was still trying to get around what was going on. Never in his brutal and full of warfare life had he found himself in such a strange situation. 'He's copying my movements like a damn mirror! It feels like-'

"-he knows what I'm about to do next?" Kakashi finished his thought for him.

'What!? Is he reading my mind as well!?'

"It makes you furious, doesn't it?"

Zabuza sneered at the silver-haired Jounin. "All you do is copy me like a monkey! You can't-"

"-beat me-"

"-with just-"

"-a few tricks!-"

"-I'll-"

"-crush you!" they both said in unison.

Kiri's Demon couldn't take it any longer. That man had infuriated him to levels he didn't even knew existed. That eye, that repulsive red eye was making him lose his mind. If he stared at it one more second... No, that was it. He was going to erase that eye from existence no matter what the cost. "When I'm done with you, you'll never open that monkey mouth again!" he roared with bloodshot eyes. But as he started doing the hand signs for his next jutsu, his eye caught something behind Kakashi. It was a shadow of some sort, but how was that possible? Even though most of his mist was gone, his surroundings were still foggy. No natural shadow was possible in such an environment. Taking a better look what Kakashi had at his back, he realized that the shadow was gone and replaced by...

... A copy of himself?

'What is this!? Is this a Genjutsu!?' he mentally screamed.

Indeed it was.

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!"

Poor Zabuza was so distracted by the illusion that he failed to notice Kakashi finishing his hand signs. A gigantic vortex was formed out of the water and was sent at Zabuza, who was unable to react in time and was blown away by its strength. Naruto, who was still in the lake, was forced to hang on for dear life to a branch. The impact was so great that Zabuza was thrown away hundreds of meters, eventually stopping next to a tree. But once again, he was too slow and damaged to react properly as four kunais were buried in his arms and legs muscles, courtesy of your ever-loving Copy-Ninja. Zabuza screamed in agony.

Kakashi, who was sitting on a tree branch nearby, spoke up. "Now it's over."

"H-How? Can you... see the ... future?"

"Yes, and let me tell you something. This is your last battle."

Before anything else could be said, two senbons were buried into Zabuza's neck. The Kiri ninja's shocked expression went without the smallest of shouts, for the attack was as deathly as it was sudden. His body went limp and his vision cloudy, darkness surrounding him as he fell to the ground.

And Momochi Zabuza, Kiri's Demon and A-Rank shinobi, was no more.

"Indeed, it was his last battle." a voice echoed through the woods. Everyone looked around and saw a mysterious figure standing on a tree branch. The figure wore what Shujinko assumed to be an ANBU mask, dark green Hakama pants and blue, short-sleeved robe with a green, long-sleeved shirt underneath and a brown sash around the waist. Judging by the long and black hair, Shujinko guessed she was a female. Or maybe that's what he wanted to look like?

Kakashi approached the body of Zabuza and placed two fingers on his neck, looking for heartbeats. "No vital signs." he commented after a while.

The unidentified ninja lowered his head. "Thank you. I have followed Zabuza for a while, waiting for an opportunity to take him down."

"By your mask, I take it you're a Tracker-Nin from Kirigakure." Kakashi responded.

"Impressive. You're well informed."

Naruto made his way to the group as fast as he could. "A Tracker-Nin!" he shouted as if he knew what it was.

"Naruto, you don't even know what that is. You missed the Academy's lesson as usual. Tracker-Nins have a very important task to do. When a rogue ninja breaks away from his village, he carries all sorts of secrets with him, the secrets of his people. Tracker-Nins are trained to hunt down these ninjas and eliminate them. That way, those secrets remain safe." Sakura explained as she went 'Sensei Mode' on Naruto.

The Tracker-Nin nodded. "That's correct. I'm a member of the elite tracking unit from Kirigakure no Sato. It was my duty to stop Zabuza."

'Judging from his voice and height, he must be the same age as Naruto.' Kakashi said narrowing his eyes. 'Yet, he is a member of Kirigakure's elite tracking unit. He's no ordinary kid, but what is he?'

"What is this!? Who the hell do you think you are!?"

Everyone fixed his gaze on Naruto, who was pointing at the Tracker-Nin with his finger, a look of anger shown clear in his face. 'What's wrong with him? Shouldn't Naruto be a lot calmer now that Zabuza's been dealt with?' Shujinko thought confused. Carefully, he approached his blonde teammate to figure out why he was feeling so uneasy.

"Did you hear me!? I asked who the hell you think you are!"

"Easy, Naruto. He's not out enemy." Kakashi said.

"That's not the point! Did you see what he did, just like that? Zabuza was huge and powerful like some kind of monster, and this kid who's no older than me brought him down in one move like it was nothing! I mean what does that make us? We're just bumbling around, we don't know anything! How am I supposed to accept that!?"

Now Kakashi understood what was going on. Naruto was feeling small and useless against the Tracker-Nin, who showed no fear or hesitation whatsoever when handling Zabuza. The fact that he made it seem like child's play was also a big factor that needed to be considered. "Well, even if you don't accept it, that's what happened." he said as he ruffled the hair of the blonde munchkin he had for a student. "In this world, there are kids out there who are younger than you and stronger than me at the same time."

The Tracker-Nin shunshined to where Zabuza's body was and picked it up. "Your struggle is over for now. I must deal with the remains, for there are many secrets hidden in this body. I cannot let those secrets fall into the wrong hands. Please excuse me. Farewell." and with that said, he shunshined away in a small whirlwind.

Naruto began cursing himself out of frustration as he repeatedly punched the ground. Shujinko took this as his cue to intervene. "Naruto." he began to say while stopping his hand from punishing the innocent ground any further. "I get that you're angry, but that's not gonna do you any good. Just because there's someone out there younger and stronger than you doesn't mean you can't become stronger than him. After all, don't you always say how someday you will become Hokage? At some point in their lives, every Hokage had someone stronger than him. You're no exception. Besides, you're selling yourself and your team way too low. We, a bunch of Genins, were able to outsmart that Zabuza freak even when he outsmarted Kakashi-sensei. No offense, sensei." he was quick to add.

"None taken." Kakashi replied with an eye-smile as he covered his Sharingan. In all honesty, he was glad he had Shujinko as a student. The boy had a way with words, that much was true. But he was also turning out to be quite a decent team leader. Not only did he know how to handle a tough situation and how to order his teammates according to their best abilities and assets, but he also knew when to step in and take responsibility of everything.

Sasuke was every bit as talented, strong and intelligent as he was, but his coldness and indifference toward his teammates made leadership something harder for him to obtain and work with. If he had to place Sasuke in the leadership pyramid, his spot would most likely be the second-in-command.

Sakura was overall the smartest of the group, but all of her theoretical knowledge wouldn't be of much use to her if she was unable to work out a proper strategy or if she lacked proper shinobi combat skills. Kakashi doubted that Sakura could've thought about a plan to trick Zabuza the way Shujinko did. In fact, Shujinko left her out of his plan probably because her strength, both physical and mental, wouldn't have brought him any real advantage. But Kakashi had faith in her, and hopefully this mission would point out her flaws so she could work on them.

Naruto was a wild card. He was determined, confident and unpredictable as hell. Those three qualities were certainly going to help him become a great shinobi, but then again, not all great shinobi were great leaders as well. Take him for example. Sure, he was a prodigy and he knew it, graduating from the Academy at age five and all that. But he had failed as a team leader as well. Obito had to sacrifice himself so he could live, and he couldn't fulfill his promise to him of protecting Rin. Some genius he was. Besides, Naruto was also very impulsive and had a hard time keeping his emotions in check. Unnecessary recklessness was not acceptable coming from a leader.

Seeing how Shujinko's words had an effect on Naruto, the Hatake raised his voice. "We still have a mission to complete. The bridge-builder has yet to return to his home."

Tazuna laughed heartedly. "Sorry about all the trouble I've caused you, but you can rest in my house once we get to the village."

Shujinko smiled slightly. After going through such an experience, a meal and a bed sounded quite tempting. In fact, it was only now that he realized just how exhausted he was. The earth technique he pulled on Zabuza earlier was one he had read in a scroll a couple of weeks back and was still yet to be mastered. The jutsu itself required a considerable amount of chakra for a Genin, so Shujinko had to patiently practice the jutsu for weeks until he began to grasp the concept. He could've easily suffered chakra exhaustion had he not been prudent about it.

"All right, let's get a move on." Kakashi said. Not even half a minute passed when he suddenly stopped in his tracks, his visible eye wide in shock. Without even uttering a word, Kakashi fell to the ground with his eye closed, landing on his stomach and shocking the Genins and the bridge-builder in the process.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!" Naruto screamed as he approached the silver-haired Jounin as fast as he could.

Shujinko, who was momentarily stunned by the unexpected fall of his sensei, shook his head back to reality and quickly kneeled next to his body. Turning him around and unzipping the vest, Shujinko leaned over the man's chest and placed his left ear over his heart. Much to his relief, he heard slow but constant heartbeats. "He's still alive." he commented after a while, earning sighs of relief from his teammates and his client.

"Wha-What happened to Ka-Kakashi-sensei, Shujinko?" Naruto asked as he tried his best to hide the fear in his voice.

After contemplating the possibilities, Shujinko stood up. "I can only think of two options. First would be poisoning, but I highly doubt that since the only injure Kakashi-sensei has is a cut on the back of his right hand, and it was made by a weapon that had no poison in it as far as I'm concerned. Second would be chakra exhaustion. Since Kakashi-sensei performed two water jutsus that undoubtedly take a lot of chakra to do, I'd go with this one. Other than that, I have no idea." 'On the other hand, chakra exhaustion takes a toll on you gradually; it doesn't hit you all at once. Still, that's the only explanation I can come with.' "Naruto, are you still able to do the Kage Bushin no Jutsu?"

"Ye-Yeah."

"Good. Make five clones and make them carry Kakashi-sensei. Tazuna-san, we need to get to your house as soon as possible. Lead the way."

Tazuna nodded. "Of course, it's not far from here."

|Tazuna's house|

"We're finally here. Please, make yourselves at home." Tazuna said as he opened the door of his house.

The house wasn't very big and was poorly decorated, but it was tidy and had that homey feeling to it. Shujinko supposed that they didn't really need a big home since Tazuna lived alone with his daughter and grandson. It wouldn't really make a lot of sense to live in a mansion when only three people slept under its roof. "Tazuna-san, do you have a room where we can put Kakashi-sensei?" Shujinko asked as he had forgotten for a moment why they were in such a rush to reach the bridge-builder's home.

"Yes. There's a small dormitory upstairs. Feel free to use it. I'll let Tsunami know you have arrived."

Naruto's clones quickly took off and went upstairs with Sakura, who quickly set up a futon where Kakashi could rest. When they were done, they went downstairs to meet up with Shujinko and Sasuke. Shujinko took the liberty of making tea to his teammates. Both Naruto and Sakura expressed their gratitude towards the kindness while Sasuke said nothing. The golden-eyed boy took no offense since he knew his rival rarely showed any emotion at all. Once everyone was finished, Shujinko left his cup on the table nearby and started talking. "You know, I've been thinking that, since Kakashi-sensei is temporary out of the game, we should... name a team leader for the time being." he hesitated to say, not wanting to give his teammates any wrong ideas.

Naruto blinked. "A team leader?"

Shujinko nodded. "Yes, a team leader. I think it would help with the organization and the overall performance of the mission. So, what do you say?"

"Me! Me! Pick me! I want to be the team leader!" Naruto all but shouted in excitement. The blond could already picture himself standing on top of the Hokage Monument with Sasuke bowing to him, ready to do his bidding as well as Sakura swooning over him with stars in her eyes.

Sakura wasted no time as she immediately punched Naruto in the head. "Baka! If anyone's going to be team leader, it should be Sasuke-kun!"

Although she clearly stated that Sasuke should be appointed team leader, Sakura liked the idea of her being team leader. Mainly so she could order Naruto and Shujinko around and spend some alone time with her beloved Sasuke-kun.

After a moment of silence in which Sasuke simply stood there brooding, he finally accepted the fact that they were expecting an answer from him. "I have no interest in being the team leader. It sounds like a waste of time." he stated. The Uchiha saw no use on being the leader of the team due that he failed to see how that would make him stronger. Being the team leader implied having to care for those under your command, and Sasuke didn't have the tiniest bit of interest regarding that. He was supposed to grow stronger in order to avenge his clan, not to look after a pair of weaklings.

"Yatta! That means that I get to be the team leader!" the Kyubi Jinchuriki proclaimed loudly, pumping his fist in a sign of victory. "Did you hear that, teme? I'm your boss from now on!"

Sasuke scoffed. "Like you have the brains to actually come up with something remotely smart, dobe. We'd be better off following orders from a rock."

"What was that, teme!?"

"You heard me, usuratonkachi!"

"Naruto, Sasuke, would you mind stop your bickering? We are in another man's house." Shujinko said with a stern look. The two boys stopped arguing and begrudgingly sat down. "Like I was saying, I'd like to propose myself as team leader as well. It would only be for this mission anyways. When we get back home, we'll decide again who the team leader is and who's not."

This left Sasuke with two options: Either listen to loud, idiotic commands from the dead-last of the class, or work with Shujinko, the teammate that annoyed him the least and had a similar mindset when it came to warfare and strategies. Tough choice? Not really. Giving Shujinko a half nod as an answer, Sasuke made up his mind. Of course, this meant that the brown-haired boy also had Sakura's vote, since she obviously wouldn't dare to think otherwise than her Sasuke-kun. This was proven correct as Sakura said that 'she trusted Sasuke-kun with his decision' and voted for Shujinko. At least this way Naruto-baka wouldn't annoy him or her.

And so, Team 7 had a new temporary team leader. Shujinko let out a wide grin as Naruto sulked in one corner of the room, anime tears flowing freely down his cheeks.

* * *

'I think I overdid it with my Sharingan.' Kakashi groaned as he struggled to get up from the futon. His body was tense and heavy, which were normal signs of chakra exhaustion recovery. This one, whoever, was going to take a while to recover. He couldn't even talk without feeling weak.

"Waking up, huh? Are you alright?" a woman said. She wore a pink shirt and a blue skirt and had black hair with obsidian eyes.

"I've been better." he muttered. "It's going to be a while before I can move normally, a week or so."

"In that case, it would be better if you just lay down and rest." the woman said concerned, almost like a mother telling her sick child to stay in bed.

"R-Right."

It was in that moment when Team 7's Genin showed up. "Look, sensei's coming around." Naruto said.

Sakura approached the silver-haired man and kneeled next to him. "Listen sensei, your Sharingan is amazing and everything, but if it puts that much strain on you then maybe it's not worth it."

"Sakura has a point, Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko said with a nod. "If your battle with Zabuza had been any longer, just imagine how you would be feeling right now."

"Well, you did take down one of the most powerful ninja assassins so we should be safe for a while." Tazuna reasoned.

"Right..." Sakura trailed off.

Shujinko, whoever, wasn't so sure about that. Gatou's fortune was, to put it simply, huge. In a place as poor as Nami no Kuni, people were probably willing to do almost anything to fill their pockets with money or get their hands on some goods. Add Gatou's wealth to the equation, and you get hundreds if not thousands of people willing to attack a bunch of kids and an old bridge-builder. To make things worse, Kakashi was far from being fit to battle. The only advantage that they MIGHT have going on would be that other potential attackers could be aware of Kakashi's presence with them, and not his health condition. No matter how desperate a mercenary was for money, he would never try to attack a Jounin. A severely weakened Jounin, however, could be a different story. Shujinko decided not to let out his suspicions for the moment.

"What about that boy with the mask?" Sakura questioned.

"He's a member of Kirigakure's elite tracking unit. Those masks are only worn by the most elite shinobi. The ANBU Black-Ops, also known as the Inferno Squad, destroy the corpses of Missing-Nins, leaving nothing behind. The shinobi body contains many secrets: Ninjutsu, chakra, special medicine used on his body, and more. These are the secrets of his village. If other ninjas were to find and retrieve the body, the people from the village would be in great danger. For instance, if I were to die at the hands of an enemy, they would try to analyze my Sharingan. In the worst case, all of my jutsus would be stolen and used against our home village. It is the duty of Tracker-nins to prevent them from being discovered in order to keep their village safe. If a ninja betrays his village, the task of a Tracker-nin is to hunt him down and obliterate his body. That's their specialty."

Shujinko listened carefully to his sensei, wondering just how skilled one had to be to actually enter the ANBU, let alone the ANBU Black-Ops. That was one thing he had also given a thought. Shujinko liked to think ahead, and while his dream of becoming one of the strongest and respected shinobi of his village was still intact, joining the ANBU was something he couldn't quite make up his mind about. Sure they looked awesome with their masks and all and it would speak good things of his abilities, but it sounded like a bloody and lonely life, more so than the average ninja. Jounin he could understand, but ANBU seemed so... dark. Besides, Kakashi was a Jounin himself and Shujinko was willing to bet that he was stronger than most ANBU's if his fight with Zabuza was anything to go by.

Seeing how his sensei became quiet, Shujinko decided to break the silence. "I think Kakashi-sensei needs some rest. You want me to fetch you something to eat, sensei?"

"That's very kind of you, but I think some more sleep will do just fine. Wake me up if something interesting happens."

"Well, there's this one thing we decided while you were out cold..." Shujinko trailed off.

The Hatake raised his only visible eyebrow. "Really now? And what is it that you four decided?"

"I... I became the mission's team leader while you were absent." the brown-haired boy responded with his face now red due to the embarrassment of the situation. The surprised look from his sensei only made him more nervous. "If you want me to pull back, I completely understand. I just thought that... while you were... you know... recovering, it would be good to have someone on... in charge."

Kakashi chuckled weakly. "Actually, I think that is a good idea. Listen up, from here on now, Shujinko is my second-in-command until the mission is over. Got it?"

"Hai!"

* * *

So, what do you think of the fight with Zabuza? I hope I'm not making Shujinko look overpowered or genius-like or anything. Shujinko is very smart when it comes to strategies as well as creative. Besides, he does have that 'leader' aura around, which doesn't means he won't struggle with it as the mission goes on. He has very high expectations on himself.

Ja ne!


	7. Chapter 7 (part 4)

**CHAPTER 7: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 4)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking."

'Thinking.'

"Jutsu."

'Flashback'

"Flashback talk"

* * *

'Something's wrong. I have this feeling inside of me I can't get rid of.' Kakashi thought as he slowly massaged his temples.

Ever since he woke up, his shinobi senses had been ringing. At first he dismissed the thought, thinking that it was most likely a secondary effect from experiencing chakra exhaustion, but he had now regained his consciousness and the feeling was still there. A good shinobi trusted his instincts and his guts, which was something he had learned during his time as ANBU, and that very lesson saved his life more times than he could care to count. Fresh Genin could label him as 'paranoid', but the truth was that they had never faced a threat like the ones Kakashi had dealt with. The slight tremble he was feeling in his stomach was telling him, almost shouting at him, that danger was somewhere out there.

Shujinko witnessed his sensei frowning in deep distress. "Is something the matter, Kakashi-sensei?"

"... Tracker-Nins are supposed to eliminate the corpse of his target on the spot so there's no room for error. "

"Ok, but is really that important?" Sakura asked as she raised an eyebrow.

Kakashi sighed. "Think about it. What did that tracker did with Zabuza's body?"

"He carried it away, I guess."

"Exactly, but why? He should've work on Zabuza right there, as quickly as possible. Also, the weapon used for the kill is questionable as well. Do you remember what they were?"

"They were senbon." Sasuke responded before his eyes widened in realization. "No way..."

Shujinko frowned. "Why would an ANBU finish his target with senbon? They're generally used for incapacitating, but they are rarely used for killing. An ANBU should know that better than anyone." he said.

The Hatake nodded. "Exactly. None of this makes any sense."

'I can only think of one reason why that ANBU would use those senbon on Zabuza...' Shujinko thought as he tried to suppress a small shiver that was going down his spine. He couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it. And yet...

"What are you rambling about? You demolished that assassin, didn't you?" Tazuna asked.

"Here's the thing." Kakashi said as he straightened up. "Zabuza is still alive."

The news shocked everyone on the room. Naruto, who had stayed silent during the whole thing, instantly jumped. "What!?" he screeched at the top of his lungs. "But we saw his body, believe it!"

"Kakashi-sensei, you checked him yourself, you said his heart stopped beating!" Sakura yelled with a shaky voice. The news of Zabuza being back from the dead, or at least back from the sleeping, struck her harder than anyone.

"His heart did stopped beating, but that was only a temporary state to simulate death. The senbon needles that tracker used have a very low kill rate. Unless they hit a vital organ, they shouldn't cause the dead of no one. Trackers have to know every detail about the human body, and to keep their enemy alive even when they don't seem like it is something easy for them. He carried Zabuza's body away, even though it was much heavier than he was. Second, he used senbon which have a precise effect but are hardly fatal. From these two factors, we can conclude that the ANBU wasn't going to destroy Zabuza, but he was actually trying to save him."

"Come on, aren't you overthinking this?" Tazuna asked once again. He didn't knew why he asked though. These ninjas were usually right about these sort of things. However, he couldn't help but hope that there was a small chance the shinobi were wrong. And who could blame him, anyways? He had already risked their lives two times since they departed Konoha, and the last one nearly killed them. All he wanted was to see his bridge finished, but not at the cost of the children's lives. He could go and tell himself it was for the greater good, but deep down he knew he could never forgive himself.

Kakashi shook his head. "No. At the encounter of suspicion, a ninja prepares quickly, for hesitation leads to disaster. Every shinobi knows this say." as he said this, he noticed Naruto trembling and shaking his fist. There was a smile on his face. 'He's actually glad to have another shot at him.'

Sakura raised her voice. "Sensei, you said prepare quickly, but how can we do that when you can barely move?"

A chuckle escaped from the Jounin's mouth. "I can still train you."

"Hold on a minute! A last minute training isn't going to make us strong enough to deal with Zabuza! You could barely beat him even with your Sharingan! We have to be reasonable about this!"

"And why was I able to stop Zabuza in the first place, mmh? Because you all helped me. You have all grown. And you Naruto, you've grown the most."

Naruto laughed sheepishly at the statement. Shujinko, however, was clenching his fist in anger.

Kakashi noticed how his student was acting. It was certainly strange, he thought. He had rarely seen Shujinko like that ever since Team 7 was formed. The brown-haired boy was usually calm and easy-going. So why was he acting this way? He could understand if he felt scared, nervous or even anxious. But not angry. "Shujinko, are you alright?"

"It's nothing, sensei." Shujinko muttered.

The statement reeked of falseness, but Kakashi nodded nonetheless. He would ask his second-in-command about the strange change of mood later.

The blonde ninja was too excited to notice his teammate's uncommon behavior. "So you finally noticed sensei. Now things are gonna get better, believe it!"

"Well I don't believe it, and nothing is going to be good."

Everyone turned around to see a little boy with dark brown hair wearing a white fisherman hat with blue stripes. Shujinko supposed that was Tazuna's grandson. He was frowning and looking at the shinobi with deep distrust, almost like they were robbers coming to his house.

"Inari, where have you been?" Tazuna asked as the little boy made his way towards him.

"Welcome home, oji-san." Inari said as he hugged his grandfather.

Tsunami placed her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes. "Inari, that was very rude. These kind ninjas have brought your oji-san here safely. You should be a lot nicer to them, you know."

Tazuna laughed. "Don't worry. I'm rude to them too."

Inari turned around to look at the ninja, then to his mother. "Kaa-san, don't you see? These people are going to die! Gatou and his men will find them and wipe them out!"

The Ozuma looked like he was going to pound the brat into submission, but Naruto stood up and pointed a finger towards him before he could try to do anything. "What did you say, brat? Listen up; do you know what a super ninja is? Well that's me, only a lot better. I'm gonna be Hokage one day! This Gatou or Blatou or whatever is no match to a real hero like me!"

"There's no such thing as a hero. You're just full of stupid ideas."

Now Naruto was the one that looked like beating him to a pulp. Heck, Sakura was holding him from behind so he couldn't go over him.

"If you wanna stay alive, you should go back from where-"

"Oi, kid." Shujinko growled from his spot. "We've had a long journey and we still have a lot of things to do. Listening to your whining is not one of them. If you're going to be an annoyance, then please go bother somebody else."

Team 7 was completely shocked. Even Sasuke, the teammate that had known him for the longest and not the type of boy to openly show feelings, seemed somewhat surprised. Ever since they started doing missions together, Shujinko was the one who usually dealt with the clients due to his natural politeness and maturity. The clients appeared to like him because of that. Kakashi was too busy reading his perverted book and giggling like a school girl when a chapter was... interesting, only talking to introduce his group. Naruto was too loud and exhausting to hear, not to mention the villagers seemed to have an obvious distaste for him. Sasuke felt absolutely no interest in dealing with the clients, or anyone else for that matter. Finally, Sakura was always trying to engage in a conversation with Sasuke (while failing miserable at it just so you know). Not once had he snapped like that, and much less to a kid. Granted, Inari was being downright rude to them and it was satisfying in a guilty, weird sort of way to hear Shujinko shut him up. However, it was so strange to see Shujinko act that way that no one really knew what to say. Even Naruto had stop struggling and turned around to stare at his teammate.

The little boy took a step back with his mouth open, obviously taken back by the Genin's words. He then muttered something about going to watch the ocean and be left alone, quietly leaving the room. "Sorry about that. Inari can be... difficult to deal with at times." Tazuna tried to excuse his grandson.

"I understand." Kakashi said as he looked over his students, especially Shujinko. "We will start with our training in a couple of hours. Until then, you are dismissed. But first, I would like to have a word with you Shujinko. The rest of you can go."

Everyone in the room stood up and left, for it was evident that it was time for a private teacher-to-student talk. Naruto also felt the need to go upstairs and teach the little brat some respect. After all, he never really apologized to them for basically calling them hopeless. A good old smack in the head should do the trick, or maybe two? "Alright Shujinko, could you please tell me what is it that's been bothering you? I have never seen you act the way you just did." Kakashi said as he once more lay down.

"There's nothing wrong with me, Kakashi-sensei. I'm just a little stressed is all. Don't worry about me."

"You know, for such a talented Genin, you absolutely suck at lying." Kakashi casted an all-too -knowing look. This only proved how unlike himself Shujinko was acting. Lying to his sensei? That was not a smart decision, and Shujinko was an intelligent young man in his own right. "Since the moment I said Zabuza was still alive, your entire demeanor has changed and I want to know why. I can't have my second-in-command not focusing on his job, now can I?"

Shujinko sighed. He knew it was useless. "It's just that... ever since we accepted this mission, I've been realizing that there's so much more I need to learn before I can call myself a ninja. All of this time, I've thought I was a fully-fledged shinobi, yet I'm nothing but a green Genin. First, I failed to notice how there were enemy ninja hidden in the puddle of water when we were on our way here. If you wouldn't have been there with us, we would've died and so would have Tazuna-san. Then, I failed to notice how that white rabbit was actually a distraction made by Zabuza. Once again, If it weren't for your quick thinking and you warning us, we would've died and so would have Tazuna-san. Finally, I should have figure out that Kiri ANBU was actually Zabuza's partner. We spent all of this time thinking we were safe, when in reality Zabuza is still out there planning his next move against us. How am I supposed to feel about myself? Zabuza was right. Just because we have our own headbands doesn't mean we are shinobi."

Kakashi listened with great interest what his student had to say. He was actually impressed by how guilty he felt. From what he could already figure out, Shujinko placed a great deal of importance in discipline and hard work, but he never would've guessed he would mentally beat himself that much for mistakes any Genin... scratch that, lots of Chunin level ninja would've done. Had Shujinko been a Jounin or an ANBU, he would understand. After all, they were the elite shinobi from their villages and had to be tons of time more observant. But Shujinko was just a Genin, and hearing him chastise himself over things he shouldn't have been aware of was both good and bad. Good because it showed how serious he was about his shinobi career and bad because it made him feel disappointed with himself, making him go for higher goals with bigger chances of failing. It wasn't hard to tell that Shujinko was an overachiever if there ever was one. Apparently outsmarting an A-class ninja wasn't enough for him.

Then, realization dawned upon him. Shujinko, much like Sakura, was from a civilian clan. While not openly discriminated or anything of the like (except from maybe a few old and too proud for their own good retired shinobi from prestigious ninja clans), shinobi did tended to expect less from civilian-born ninjas then from clan-born ones. It wasn't that surprising when taking into account how clan ninjas usually had an advantage over the others, like Kekkei Genkais, clan secrets and growing up in a shinobi environment. In fact, there was a theory going on that said how clan-born ninjas were usually genetically stronger than civilian-borns due to having 'shinobi genes' passed down by their fathers, who had years of experience, knowledge and training under their belt. Hatake Kakashi was a fine example of that. His father, Hatake Sakumo was known as 'Konoha no Shiroi Kiba', or the White Fang of the Leaf, and he was a legend among ninjas of Konoha, with rumors of him being as strong as the Sannin. Now meet his son, who became a Genin at age 5, Chunin at age 6, Jounin at age 13 and ANBU not too later.

"... Kakashi-sensei, are you listening?" Shujinko's voice drove him back from reality. He had been staring at his student with a blank expression without noticing.

"Yes, I am. And while I understand your feelings, I think you are being a little too harsh on yourself. I could say that you shouldn't have expected any of this to happen, but we shinobi must expect the unexpected at all times, so I'm not going to go that way. Instead, I'm going to tell you what I said to Naruto yesterday: You may like it or not, but it is what happened. And if you don't like it, make up for it the next time. And just like you said to Naruto: You are selling yourself too short. I see incredible potential in you, but you have to make sure you don't get ahead of yourself, because it rarely gets pretty if you do. Don't worry, once this mission is over, I promise we can work on your perceptiveness if you desire so. Deal?"

Shujinko couldn't help but let out a smile, all frustration forgotten. "Deal. Thank you so much, sensei. I swear I won't let you down."

Kakashi eye-smile at him. "I'm sure you won't. Now why don't you go over to your teammates and do something productive while I get some rest? I'll be there with you guys in an hour or two."

"Hai."

* * *

"Ne, Shujinko, what did you talk about with Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked as he sat down next to a tree. Sasuke was not too far away, brooding on the entrance of Tazuna's house while Sakura was drinking water near Sasuke. It was oddly sunny, so Shujinko decided to leave his black jacket inside the house in favor of going with his plain white t-shirt.

"Oh, you know. How I need to watch my temper towards the client and his family so I don't mess up. No big deal." Shujinko said with a shrug, not wanting to let his team know about his issues for the moment. Kakashi's words were actually comforting and let him know that his sensei cared about him. It was quite reassuring, actually. Apparently Naruto bought the excuse and went back to playing with his kunai. "Anyways, Kakashi-sensei told me to do something with you while he's still resting." he said before turning face Sasuke, who's gaze was now up. "Sasuke, while I spar with Naruto and Sakura, go take a walk around the area and look out for any possible threats. Zabuza may not be around, but there may be others that know of Tazuna-san's location and will try to get their hands on him."

Naruto looked irritated. "Wait a minute, how comes Sasuke-teme gets to take a walk on the park? I wanna beat his ass to the ground, believe it!"

Sasuke didn't look perturbed at all. He had expected such an answer from the blond Genin. "Because, dobe, you're not worth my time. Just shut up and try to be of some use for once."

"Why you-!"

"Naruto, stop it. Sasuke, please go on."

"Hnh." Sasuke 'said' as he stood up and went for a walk. He knew was Shujinko was doing. Both of them already knew each other weaknesses and a sparring match between them would be close to pointless if what Shujinko had in mind was to pick up flaws. Besides, taking walks was one of his hobbies. It let him ponder about whatever he had in mind and be alone. He stood up, not bothering to acknowledge anyone's existence and started walking through the forest.

"Alright, back to the matter at hand. Naruto, Sakura, I'll be sparring with the both you. It will be a Taijutsu-only match. Once we finish, we can go over what went wrong and what can we do to improve. Naruto, you're first."

Naruto immediately got up and walked towards Shujinko, a confident smirk on his face. "Yosh! Get ready to eat dirt, Shujinko! You're gonna see why I'll become the next Hokage!" he proclaimed. Although what he wanted the most was to beat Sasuke in front of everyone and finally get the recognition he deserved, he wasn't going to deny that beating Shujinko was close enough. All of those times in the Academy when people gossiped about how strong and good-looking both Sasuke and Shujinko were made him realize that surpassing Shujinko had also become one of his goals. Sasuke had most, if not all of the attention back in the day, when Shujinko was still not that popular. He promised himself he would defeat Sasuke one day, and Uzumaki Naruto never backed down from a promise. That was why he had ignored Shujinko for some time and was jealous of the last Uchiha. He didn't realize that Shujinko was just as good as Sasuke until people started calling him 'Sasuke's only rival'. By that time, he was only focused on pulling pranks and gaining the attention of the villagers. Besides, he and Sasuke were like natural enemies while Naruto's relationship with Shujinko wasn't that bad, mainly because Shujinko had never disrespected him like the rest of the class did (except for a few exceptions like Shino, Hinata, Choji and Shikamaru).

But now Shujinko was his teammate and rival. It was time for a change.

"I'll believe that when I'm aware of what you can do." Shujinko replied in a very Sasuke-like fashion. As "Sakura, do you mind being the referee here?"

"R-Right. Hum, first of all.. Perform the sparring sign like in the Academy." the both did. "Ready... go!"

As Shujinko expected, Naruto was the one who made the first move. As soon as Sakura signalized to start, Naruto run as fast as he could and attempted to punch Shujinko across his face. Shujinko evaded Naruto's fist with little effort and jumped to his right. Naruto then went for a low kick followed by several jabs which Shujinko either blocked or dodged. Getting a little frustrated, the blond Genin attempted to bury his knee deep into Shujinko's stomach but was interrupted by the Ozuma's fist directed to his face. The Kyuubi Jinchuriki had barely enough time to block the strike as Shujinko's hand passed very close his cheek. Now it was Naruto the one on the defensive.

He decided to test him on his pain tolerance. Knowing Naruto, he was not going to give up until he won or until he was knocked out. As Shujinko jumped to his left, he took advantage of Naruto's open spot and sent him a kick to the ribs. Naruto felt the pain quickly spreading as he let out a yelp. Annoyed by the fact that he still wasn't able to land a solid hit,

Shujinko, as he started to throw blows that Naruto was struggling to defend, was mentally adding good and bad things into his list of Naruto's Taijutsu Pros and Cons. He had good strength, good enough speed and a pain tolerance probably bigger than his. However, his stance and technique were simply disgusting. His defense was full of holes an enemy shinobi could take advantage of and his position gave away nearly all of his next movements. Naruto countered that by being extremely unpredictable, to which Shujinko approved highly. Two minutes after, Shujinko decided that he had seen enough. He could've ended the fight sooner, but he wouldn't have been able to analyze Naruto's hand-to-hand combat skills properly. Taking advantage of Naruto's attempting kick, Shujinko swept his standing leg, making Naruto fall flat on his back. Before he knew, Shujinko was in top of him holding a kunai very close to his throat.

The spar was over.

"Shujinko is the winner!" Sakura said excited. She wasn't the type of girl that payed to much attention to sparring matches, but she couldn't deny watching Naruto and Shujinko fight was nothing short of entertainment.

The Ozuma quickly stood up and offered Naruto the unison sign with a warm smile, which he gladly accepted. Hey, he might be upset about losing, but people rarely ever bothered to treat him like an equal, so it wasn't that bad. Once they were both up and walking, Shujinko spoke up. "Ok Naruto, listen up. Your Taijutsu needs work. You have a good enough physique and lots of stamina, but your technique is really lacking. Fortunately, that's something that can be fixed. If you work on your footing and stance, adding your unpredictableness to the mix, you could actually come up with some vicious combinations."

"Awesome!" the blond shouted with enthusiasm. "But... how do I train this 'stance' stuff?"

"Mainly by repeating Taijutsu katas and things like that. I know a couple that might suit you. How about I show you them after I finish with Sakura?" Shujinko asked, earning an affirmative nod from Naruto. "Great. Alright Sakura, it's your turn."

Sakura gulped and approached Shujinko trembling all the way. This was not going to be pretty for her. She always disliked the physical part of shinobi training, thinking that the sweat would ruin her hair and make her look less appealing to Sasuke. Of course, not one time had Sasuke ever bothered to say anything about her looks, or anything about her, to be honest. She just kept waiting for that day were Sasuke would look at her in the eye, caress her cheek and slowly but firmly join his lips with hers. The mental image was lost the moment Sakura set her eyes on Shujinko. He was looking at her the way a strict father would look at his child: 'Whatever you do, do NOT disappoint me'. She gulped once more.

"Ready... begin!"

Somehow, Sakura found the courage to actually go and attempt to hit Shujinko, who lazily dodged the fist coming his way. She tried three more times, but always gained the same answer. Realizing that punching wouldn't get her very far, Sakura tried something different. She went for a jab at Shujinko's mid-section, only to change her mind at the last second and throwing a kick. This proved to be a bad decision, for the golden-eyed boy grabbed her foot and threw her away. Sakura landed hard and on her stomach, making her lose some oxygen.

"Come on, Sakura. Stand up and give me your best shot." Shujinko taunted.

'YOU WANT MY BEST SHOT!? I'LL GIVE YOU MY BEST SHOT! SHANAROOOO!'

The Haruno summoned all of her strength and poured it in a full-blown attack sequence. She punched, kicked and moved as fast as her body allowed her to. Unfortunately, Shujinko merely blocked all of her incomings with his two hands with little effort. He noticed with some amusement that Sakura seemed to punch Naruto a lot harder than she did to him. Even though her stance was actually decent, her blows were too weak to cause any real damage, her speed was barely acceptable and she got tired very quickly. True enough, Sakura was now panting and seemed to be in no condition to fight. Her little mental outburst had temporally cost her the ability to think properly, so she just randomly threw punches at Shujinko with hopes of actually getting him. That sort of behavior was similar to Naruto's, which meant another thing she had to work on.

"Alright, I've seen enough." Shujinko declared as he gestured Sakura to stop fighting. Naruto quickly joined them. "Sakura, I think you can realize your own flaws, but I'm gonna say them all the same. Unlike Naruto here, your stance is actually decent. Not perfect, but good enough. Still, your body is not resilient enough to handle a real-life hand-to-hand battle. Your speed is not sufficient, and neither is your physical strength. Also, your stamina really needs some work." he said before noticing Sakura's downcast expression. So, for the sake of not having a sad and frustrated teammate by his side, he was quickly to add, "All in all, you have some a lot of work to do, but with proper training and a healthy diet you should get fit in no time." Sakura cheered up a bit, happy to know that not all hope was lost for her.

* * *

"Alright, training starts now." Kakashi said as he stood with the help of two clutches. Team 7 was somewhere in a forest not too far away from Tazuna's house. "First, we'll begin with the review of chakra, ninja's basic source of power. Understanding chakra is essential."

"We already understand chakra." Sasuke stated while looking bored out of his mind.

Naruto nodded in agreement. "That's right, we learned about catra a long time ago!"

"Chakra, Naruto." the Jounin corrected. "Sakura, if you may..."

"Alright baka, listen here because I am not repeating myself again."

Sakura started to explain in a text-book sort of way what chakra was, how was it produced, and other things of the like. Shujinko and Sasuke payed little attention to this, already knowing about chakra a long time ago. By the time she was finished, Naruto was rubbing the back of his head looking anything but enlightened.

"What's the big deal with all these complicated explanations? The whole point is to know how to do the jutsu, isn't it?" he asked a little irritated.

Kakashi sighed. Naruto reminded him of Obito so much, sometimes it wasn't even funny. "These complicated explanations are so you can understand how your power works. You don't have a full grasp on your power, you've barely scratch the surface of it."

"And how do we obtain a full grasp on our power, Kakashi-sensei?" Shujinko asked before another of Naruto's outburst. Being the always-improving ninja that he was, the Ozuma kid was always looking for ways to get stronger. He saw how Sasuke perked up at the sound of the word power, although it was very subtle. It was like a little spark of excitement in his eyes that lasted for a second.

"By drawing on physical and spiritual energies, and them combine them within yourself. How do you do that, you may ask? Each jutsu requires different types of chakra in different proportions. You must select them and combine them the right way. Up until now, you have simply guessed the amount of chakra required and hoped that it comes out right. Even if you produce a lot of chakra, if you don't know how to balance it, then it's all worthless. The jutsu won't work at all, or it will come out a joke. You waste so much energy that you'll drain yourself before you know it, which means that you won't be able to fight at all. A target is what you'll become."

"And how do we change that?" Naruto asked sheepishly.

"By training so hard that controlling your chakra becomes second nature to you. To achieve this goal, you must be ready to put your life on the line." Kakashi responded. "You'll start by climbing a tree..."

"What? Come on, sensei! Let's get serious here!" Naruto exclaimed completely amazed.

"I am serious. There's one rule though. No hands whatsoever."

Sakura scoffed at him. "You're kidding, right?"

The Hatake shrugged. "Am I? Let's see." he said before doing the ram handsign to gather chakra. Next thing, he was walking straight up a tree using nothing but his feet and clutches. He was making it look so easy Shujinko thought he wasn't even trying. He had heard of the exercise before, but never attempted to do it. Instead, he decided to perform an advanced form of the leaf exercise. The objective of the leaf exercise was to channel chakra to one's forehead and use it to maintain it there. The exercise itself was basic, but Shujinko had the idea to add several leaves to it in different parts of his body. The extra leaves made the exercise extra hard, but the reward was worth it. "What you have to do is to focus the chakra towards the soles of your feet and use it to connect to connect to the tree. This is one way to use the power of chakra."

"Wait a minute! That's a nice trick and all, but how does that helps us to fight Zabuza?" Sakura asked.

"It's the only way to fight him, Sakura. That's the entire point of this training." the Jounin replied. "First, you'll learn how to draw a precise amount of chakra to a specific point of your body. This kind of climbing requires a subtle mix of physical and spiritual energy, not to mention that your feet are the most difficult part of your body to gather chakra. Are you getting the picture? If you can master this, you'll be able to master any jutsu. Well, at least theoretically. The second point is to maintain your chakra levels. When a ninja is focused on battle, it is even harder for him to control and maintain his chakra levels. That can be disastrous, and in order to avoid this, a ninja must learn to maintain his chakra levels to the point of becoming second nature. Now, I can talk about this all day, but that wouldn't improve your skills. You need to apply the power of chakra through training."

With that said, Kakashi threw four kunais at his student's feet. "Use those kunais to mark the highest spot you can reach without using your hands. Then, try to get past it and so on. At first you'll need to run towards the tree so your momentum can take you as high as possible, until you can get used to it. Are you ready?"

Naruto grinned. "I'm ready! This is gonna be a piece of cake, believe it! Don't you remember, Kakashi-sensei? You said I was the one who had grown the most!"

"You're definitely the one who talks the most. Now get moving!"

Shujinko did as told. The moment his feet touched the tree, he felt awkward. It was like jogging, but with the gravity pushing you down. Every step he took, he had to be extremely careful not to overdo it. However, he realized that he would slip off if he didn't added enough strength.

He smirked. This was going to be interesting.

* * *

Not a lot of action in this one, I know. I decided to focus on Shujinko's personality rather than his skills on this one in order to relate to the character. Next one should be a lot more entertaining.

Ja ne!


	8. Chapter 8 (part 5)

**CHAPTER 8: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 5)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking."

'Thinking.'

"Jutsu."

'Flashback'

"Flashback talk"

* * *

Shujinko was not amused. The tree-walking exercise was way tougher than he expected to be. It didn't help that Sakura was the first to complete it, either. The girl had the exercise down in one try, which shocked everyone since Sakura wasn't exactly the kind of Genin that did well in this sort of things. Once again, her knowledge was her strong point, not practical things. Still, she performed the exercise with ease, something that neither Shujinko nor Sasuke expected as they were still stuck. Still, Kakashi insisted on keeping her practicing with the rest of Team 7.

Naruto was the one who had it the toughest. He could barely walk five steps before hitting the ground. Shujinko noticed this and deducted it was probably because of his larger chakra reserves. It was common knowledge that bigger chakra reserves meant a harder time with chakra control, and Naruto had more chakra then anyone Shujinko knew. While he was thinking this, he remembered reading somewhere in a scroll that boys usually had larger chakra reserves than girls, while girls usually had a better chakra control than boys. 'So maybe that's why it was so easy for Sakura to do this? No, there's gotta be another reason.' he thought. Just because she was a girl didn't meant she could have that level of chakra control. Maybe she was a natural genius at this? Who would've thought?

Meanwhile, Shujinko and Sasuke were pretty much tied, like they usually did in all of the other shinobi-oriented things. They almost reached the middle of their trees, but they were not progressing as fast as they wanted.

'This is going nowhere.' Shujinko thought as he took a seat next to his tree and started drinking water from his canteen, allowing himself a small interlude. 'I need to run towards the tree in order to gain momentum. But because I'm always running, I can't concentrate on the steady flow of chakra my feet needs. Every step I take, my chakra flows slightly changes. I need to know the exact amount of chakra necessary before I touch the tree.'

Sasuke noticed how Shujinko had stopped from the exercise. The look on his face was one that Sasuke more than knew: Shujinko was strategizing the exercise at hand.

He frowned. Every time he did that face, Shujinko usually ended up figuring out whatever he had in his mind. The golden-eyed boy had a gift when it came to look at things with a different perspective, a trait that Sasuke had no choice but to be aware of. In more than one occasion, Shujinko had outsmarted him because he noticed things Sasuke hadn't, which ended up with Shujinko having the upper hand in combat. He made sure to watch him closely now, because even if his Uchiha pride wouldn't admit it out loud, the Ozuma was a rival to be feared when both his brain and body were working together. He wasn't his rival because of nothing.

Suddenly, a smirk was formed on Shujinko's mouth. 'That's it! I think I got it now!'

Standing up, Shujinko placed his feet in the tree, took five steps... and simply stood there. Not falling, but not advancing either. He stood there for five minutes straight.

"Shujinko." the voice of Kakashi called out. "The point of the exercise is to reach the top of the tree, not just stand there."

"I am aware of that, sensei."

"Then may I ask what is it that you're trying to do?"

"Mah, mah, have some faith in your student." Shujinko replied with a grin and an eye-smile, imitating his sensei's lazy voice and manner of speaking.

Kakashi sweat-dropped. 'I don't sound like that, do I?'

Jumping out of the tree, Shujinko walked back to his starting point, a confident look on his face. When he started again, he made sure to run slower than before, and the moment his feet touched the bark of the tree, he kept on going... and going... and going until he almost reached the top of the tree, very much like Sakura did. He smiled. The advanced version of the leaf exercise wasn't such a waste after all.

"Huh? Hey look! Shujinko's up there too!" Naruto yelled, gaining the attention of everyone present. True enough, Shujinko was standing on a branch near the top, smirking proudly at his success.

Sasuke scowled at him. 'What did he do to go that far up?'

'So that's what he was doing.' Kakashi thought with a smile, proud to have such outstanding students. 'He was able to calculate the required amount of chakra needed by standing there those five minutes. Neither Sasuke or Naruto have thought of that.' "Good work, Shujinko. I guess I need to have some more faith in my students."

'Darn it! How comes Shujinko is so good at this stuff!?' Naruto mentally ranted.

"Alright, since both Shujinko and Sakura have proved to be quite adept at chakra control, they will go to help Tazuna-san with his bridge. Meanwhile, you two will stay here until you get it right." the silver-haired Jounin said, pointing at the Uchiha and the Uzumaki. The two Genins glared at each other in unison.

* * *

|Tazuna's bridge|

Sakura and Shujinko found themselves in the middle of the construction area. They took the liberty of giving some fresh water to the workers there, as they knew they worked hard every day in order for the bridge to be completed. Shujinko also took the time to know Sakura better. He never really talked to her much back at the Academy, and now that they were teammates, he thought this was the perfect opportunity for the both of them to get to know each other. Shujinko found himself slightly surprised, for Sakura was actually a nice person once he knew her better. Granted, her obsession with Sasuke was annoying and her attitude towards Naruto wasn't the best in his opinion, but other than that she was a polite and overall good girl, if only a little naive some times.

Sakura, for her part, was also pleased with Shujinko. She knew he was (in her mind) almost as strong as Sasuke was, but unlike the Uchiha heir, he was actually sociable and took the time to listen to what she had to say, never ignoring her. Though she doubted she would ever develop feelings for another boy, she had no choice but to acknowledge the fact that Shujinko was actually good looking in his own way. His tanned skin and his brown hair complimented his fascinating golden eyes the same way Sasuke's pale skin and raven hair complimented his onyx eyes. Despite his professionalism, he wasn't unreachable.

After patrolling the bridge for a while, the pair of Genins took a seat. A few minutes later, Tazuna showed up with a heavy looking metal bar in his hands. "Hey, what are you two doing here? And where is that weird blond gaki? And the other one with the attitude?"

"We are here doing our job, Tazuna-san. As for Sasuke and Naruto, they are still training in the forest." Shujinko responded.

Sakura nodded and smiled smugly. "Since we two were the best at the exercise, Kakashi-sensei sent us to guard you."

Tazuna was tempted to snort at them in disbelief, but chose not to do so. He wasn't sure about that Sakura girl was capable of, but he had seen Shujinko in action before. Even if he wasn't a ninja like them, it looked more than obvious to him that the kid was tough.

"Oi Tazuna, I need to have a word with you." a random worker called as he came close to the master bridge-builder.

"What about?"

"The thing is... I've been thinking a lot about the bridge and I decided that I have pushed my luck far enough. I want out."

"What!? Are you really going to quit on me just like that!?"

The worker locked his eyes into the ground. "I stayed so far because of our friendship, but I'm putting my life on the line everyday day that I come here. Gatou and his thugs will show up eventually. And when they do, they'll kill you and the bridge will never get done anyway. Oh, come on Tazuna! Don't look at me like that. Why don't we just quit now while we still can?"

"No way. This is our bridge. Our island is poor and it will stay that way until we connect this bridge to the main land. Trade and hope won't come here by its own."

"Hope won't do us much good if we are dead." the worker countered.

Tazuna glared at him before starting to walk. "It's already noon. It's time for lunch. Don't bother coming back from the break."

* * *

After work, Shujinko and Sakura joined Tazuna at the market. This was, by far, the poorest place Shujinko had ever seen in his life. The shops, if you could call them that, were nearly collapsed and had little to offer. Civilians were out on the streets, sleeping on the curbs and begging for money. One man passed in front of them wearing a sign that said: 'I will do any job' while another was shouting 'Thief! Thief!' to a kid that was running away from him, holding a wrinkled apple in his hand.

Shujinko was tempted to open his wallet and give some spare money he had earned on his previous D-ranks, but quickly retained himself. If he gave money so openly, it would certainly draw attention on him and Sakura. Shujinko doubted anyone here gave money just like that without expecting something in return. People would recognize them as foreigners, something that was to be avoided right now.

"Here we are." Tazuna said, stopping in a small supply store that had little to sell. The store owner muttered a lazy 'welcome' before going back to whatever it was that he was doing.

Sakura checked the shelves were the food was supposed to be. There were only a few carrots here and there, a lettuce and a bunch of onions. 'This is supposed to be a store? There's nothing here.' she thought with disappointment. Suddenly, she felt a hand touching her near the lower part of her body. She turned around to see a shady looking man grinning lecherously. "YOU PERVERT!" Sakura screeched as she kicked the man square in his jaw, pulling a couple of teeth out of his mouth while she was at it.

Shujinko was about to clarify that the man was actually going for the purse she had and not her butt, but in the end he remained silent. He spotted a small bag of rice on one of the shelves and bought it for his team. Tazuna probably had barely enough money to feed his family; there was no need for him to buy more than what he needed to.

Once they were out of the store, Tazuna spoke up. "Wow, you really surprised me back there." he said addressing Sakura. "Girls don't fight like that around here."

"Oh yeah? Well they should! Something is seriously wrong here!" Sakura said out loud, visibly annoyed by the previous episode. Then, another hand made its way to her lower back. 'Not again! Shanaro!' "Listen here you bast-"

But the hand didn't belong to the man she busted in the store.

A kid no older than 7 was holding his tiny hands towards Sakura. He had messy black hair and blue eyes, his face filled with dirt. "Please?" he begged with a smile as he closed his eyes.

Sakura started to tear up as her heart started to shrink. The whole thing was simply so sad. The little boy was looking at her so hopeful, like she could change his life forever with only one small piece of food. It meant nothing to her, yet it meant the world to him.

How was she supposed to say no? Reaching her purse, she handed the kid some candies she happened to have with her. The kid gave Sakura a smile so wide it could rival Naruto's. "Thank you, miss!"

"Here." Shujinko said as he reached his own wallet and gave the kid a bunch of ryos. It wasn't much, but the little boy stared at him like he had just given him the winning lottery ticket.

"Thank you so much, sir!" the boy said before giving him a hug. Shujinko was a little taken back by the action, but quickly returned the embrace. Silent tears were now running freely down Sakura's face.

With the kid now lost in the crowd of people, Tazuna approached the pair of Gennins. "This is how it has always been since Gatou came here. The children suffer, and the adults are too scared to stand up against him. They have lost all hope. That's why we have to finish the bridge, so trade and commerce can arrive. But maybe more important, that bridge will be a symbol of courage. We must restore the spirit of our people. When the bridge is finished, people will start to believe that they can live with dignity once more. That's why we can't let Gatou stop us."

* * *

|Tazuna's house|

Shujinko found himself staring at the way Naruto and Sasuke literally devoured the food in front of them. It was already dark outside and Tsunami took the liberty of cooking the guests a warm meal of rice and eggs, accompanied with some bread. Both Shujinko and Sakura were eating their bowls calmly, enjoying the simple but rich flavor their food had. Kakashi joined them but didn't ate anything, excusing himself with a 'sorry, but I already ate' (Shujinko mentally groaned at that. He really wanted to see his sensei without his mask). The mood was surprisingly comfortable and warm, or at least it was until Naruto and Sasuke started eating.

This had to be the first time Shujinko had seen his rival eat so desperately. He wasn't really surprised of Naruto's horrid table manners since the Uzumaki had a 'ramen-only' diet and no one ever bothered to correct the way he ate. But Sasuke was eating just as disgusting, Uchiha eating manners all but forgotten.

The brown-haired boy was witnessing the scene with clear distaste, never being a fanatic of watching people's food on their mouths. He spotted Kakashi slowly bringing his hand down to his pouch, were a little orange book was hidden. He immediately grabbed his sensei's hand by the wrist and sent him a hateful glare. "Don't even think about it, sensei."

Kakashi sighed as Shujinko loosened his grip on him. Seriously, was it really so bad to read a romantic novel every once in a while?

"I want some more!" both the Uchiha and the Uzumaki yelled in unison. They glared at each other before empting the content of his stomach, much to everyone's shock.

"Hey, don't eat so much if you're just gonna puke it up!" Sakura protested.

"I... have to... eat more." Sasuke grunted.

"And I... have to... eat more than him. It's the... only way... to get stronger." Naruto said with a mischievous smirk.

The Hatake sighed once more. "As true as that may be, puking won't he-"

PAAAM PAAAM

In less than a nanosecond, Shujinko stood up and smacked Sasuke and Naruto as hard as he could in the back of their heads.

"Aaaargh, what the hell was that for!" Naruto shouted while he rubbed the part were Shujinko's fist had knocked him out.

"Are you serious!? I will not have my teammates act like absolute morons! Tsunami-san went out of her way so you two could have a meal most people here would kill for, and you are wasting it like that! I don't care if you want to get stronger or not, the next time either of you do something like this again, I swear I will beat the both of you into a pulp!" Shujinko shouted in anger. Today at the market, he saw how people lived in Nami no Kuni. It was sad and pitiful. Watching those two wasting their food like that made him furious. "You know Sasuke, you're always saying Naruto is a baka, but apparently you're no better than him."

The Ozuma's threat and chastise made Naruto and Sasuke realize how they were acting. Other than Ayame, Teuchi and the Sandaime, no one had ever given Naruto something to eat. He was no stranger to searching for food in the trash. It made him feel guilty, for the one time someone else had feed him, he decided to puke it out and actually have the audacity to demand more. Sasuke, for his part, was also feeling ashamed of himself. He had been so caught up on his competition with Naruto that he was starting to act like him. Why was he so obsessed with showing up the dobe anyway?

The rest of the meal was silent and awkward, although Shujinko preferred that over watching his teammates eating prowess. When they finished, Shujinko helped Tsunami with the dishes while the rest of Team 7 discussed aimless topics. At one point, Sakura stood up and stared at a picture of a wall. In the picture, one could see Tazuna, Tsunami, Inari and another figure, although the last one's face had been torn. Sakura noticed that, unlike the Inari she knew, the Inari of the picture looked really happy, flashing a toothy grin as the torn man was ruffled his hair.

"Tazuna-san, what's wrong in this picture? Why did the man's face was torn away? You kept glancing at it all the time, Inari-kun." Sakura said.

The mood instantly darkened. Tsunami stopped cleaning and Tazuna looked at the table, not wanting to meet anyone's gaze. Shujinko, who hadn't noticed the picture until now, glared a little at Sakura. If the face of a man was torn away from a picture, there could only be one meaning behind: Painful memories, something too sad to remember with fondness. Shujinko thought of all the possible explanations. Maybe the man was a criminal that brought shame to Tazuna's family? Criminy in Nami no Kuni was definitely something not unheard of. Tazuna was standing up to criminals like Gatou, so it did make sense for Tazuna to despise someone related to the country's injustice and suffering, family or not. Maybe it was Tazuna's elder son? By the looks of it, Inari was close to the figure next to him. Could it be that the person on the picture was actually Inari's brother, who abandoned his family in pursuit of Gatou's money? It wasn't unthinkable, considering the country's indigent level of economy.

"It's my husband." Tsunami finally said her voice just barely above a whisper.

'Ahhh, so it's her husband.' Shujinko thought. Still, it could be the same case.

"They used to call him a hero in this land." Tazuna added in a low tone.

Inari immediately stood up and left the room. "Inari, where are you going?" his mother asked. The kid didn't utter a single word as he closed the door. "Tou-san, you know you can't talk about him like that when Inari is with you!" she chastised her father before running away to seek her son.

A moment of silence. "I take it there's a story behind all of this." Kakashi commented after a while.

Tazuna nodded slowly. "He wasn't his real father; he came into our family later. He brought our family a lot of happiness and became very close with Inari. Back in those days, Inari used to laugh all the time. But then..." his voice started to crack as tears came out of his eyes. "... all of that ended. Inari doesn't smile or laugh anymore. Ever since that day, everything changed. The word courage was stolen from our island. We were powerless, hopeless, and Inari suffered the most. Ever since that day... Ever since that happened..." he trailed off, the pain of the memories overpowering his will for a moment.

"Do tell us. What happened to Inari?" Kakashi urged the man.

Sniffing before answering, Tazuna said "First, you'll need to know about the man of the picture. The man who taught us the word courage, a hero to our land."

Naruto perked up at the word 'hero'. "A hero? Really?"

"You can decide that for yourself. He came here three years ago..."

Shujinko listened Tazuna's story carefully. The hero Tazuna was talking about was a fisherman by the name of Kaiza. One day, three kids were ganging up on Inari and his dog Poochi. The leader of the gang claimed Poochi for himself, and decided to test Inari's courage by throwing the dog to the sea. Inari couldn't swim very well at that age, and his fear got the better of him. He stared at Poochi, unable to move, when suddenly one of the bullies kicked him to the water as well. Panicking, Inari tried to swim but the water was too deep for him and he was running out of breath at a fast rate. In the end, Poochi made its way to the shore all by himself and ran away with the bullies behind his tail. Inari started to drown and lost consciousness, but was saved by Kaiza at the last minute.

Kaiza taught Inari to defend what was precious to him with both his arms even if he had to put his life at risk. Shujinko instantly understood why Kaiza had been such an inspiration to everybody. In lands like these, to protect something with such ferociousness would certainly be a sight to behold.

Since that day, Inari and Kaiza became inseparable, for Inari had grown without a father at his side and now he had a role model and a fatherly figure. Apparently, Kaiza never had a son before and Inari was everything he could've ever hoped for as a son. It was only a matter of time before Kaiza eventually became family, with Inari as his son and Tsunami as his wife.

One day, a flood was endangering the small town where a lot of people lived. The river's gate had been opened by the force of the waves, and the only way to stop them was to cross the river and reach the other side with a rope so the gates could be closed. Kaiza was the only one to volunteer. Against all odds and defying death, the fisherman reached the other side of the river. Using a rope, the villagers were able to close the gates and save the town. From that night, Kaiza became a hero not only in Inari's eyes, but for everyone.

However, the joy was not to last long. Gatou came to the land two weeks later and took property of everything his greedy little hands could gather. Kaiza, being the people's champion that he was, was considered and obstacle to Gatou. His thugs got a hold of him and proceeded to beat him senseless before sentence him to die in a public execution. People were shocked and wanted to protest, but without their hero, what could they do? Kaiza was killed by Gatou's bodyguards and everyone saw it, Inari included. The little boy changed, all hope lost to him. If his father couldn't stand up to Gatou, who could? He grew bitter and never laughed anymore. Because no matter what he did, it was all too clear to him that Gatou was invincible. He lost hope, and so did the villagers.

When Tazuna finished his story, Naruto shakily stood up. "I'm gonna prove him." he said.

Shujinko raised an eyebrow. "What are you exactly going to prove to Inari, Naruto?"

Naruto's face sported a foxy grin. "That in this world, there are real heroes!"

* * *

|Next morning|

"Mornin' everyone." Sakura yawned as he joined Sasuke for breakfast. Shujinko was serving his favorite jasmine tea to Kakashi, who accepted it with an eye-smile. Shujinko then greeted his pink-haired teammate with a smile and poured some tea into her cup as well. Sakura smiled back, clearly satisfied of Shujinko's thoughtfulness. "Thank you. Where's Naruto, by the way?" she asked once she realized the Uzumaki wasn't there with them.

"He's not here." Tazuna answered. "Apparently, he was outside all night practicing that tree-climbing stuff."

She sighed. "He's gone completely crazy by this point. For all I know, he could be dead by now for using too much of his chakra."

Shujinko highly doubted that. Naruto had so much chakra inside of him, it was rather frightening. He knew Shadow Clones required way more chakra than normal ones, and Naruto was able to do fifty of them without feeling tired. Naruto suffering chakra exhaustion? Yeah right.

"I certainly hope he's ok. A child spending the night in the woods all alone? I don't like that one bit." Tsunami commented.

Kakashi waved her worries off. "You have nothing to worry about. Naruto may be somewhat of a baka, but he's also a fully-fledged shinobi. He can handle himself just fine."

Surprisingly enough, Sasuke raised his own voice. "Sakura has a point. That dobe is such a loser. He's probably dead somewhere."

"Sasuke, would you mind not being this much of a jerk right now? It's early in the morning, you know." Shujinko said. He was starting to get annoyed by his sarcastic and rude remarks towards Naruto. He just wanted to have his tea in peace.

The raven-haired kid said nothing as he stood and left the kitchen. "Sasuke-kun, where are you going?"

"For a walk." he replied simply, leaving everyone to his thoughts.

Oh, but Shujinko knew better. He was sure Sasuke was indeed going for a walk. A walk to find Naruto, that is.

"But we just started eating!" Sakura protested as she looked at Sasuke's plate. It was empty with the exception of little bits of uneaten food. "That was fast." she muttered.

When everyone finished their breakfast, Shujinko and Sakura joined Kakashi on his search for Naruto. They spent the next hour shouting his name to no avail. Shujinko noticed that his sensei was regaining some of his mobility, as he now used a one-hand staff instead of the clutches. Still, he needed more time before fully regaining his use of arms and legs, but every step was a victory, or at least that was what Shujinko wanted to think. They were going to need his sensei at his peak in order to defeat Zabuza.

The voice of Sakura evaporated his train of thought. "That baka could be anywhere. And Sasuke-kun hasn't come back either. I wonder where they are."

The second she finished her sentence, a kunai that came from above buried itself on the ground near her. Everyone gasped and looked up to the figure of Naruto, who was sitting on a branch of a tree, grinning widely.

Sakura was honestly impressed. "Naruto can actually go that far up now using his chakra? Amazing!"

"What do you guys think? High enough for you? It's a long way down, isn't it?" Naruto said as he stood up, only to slip at the moment he was up. Sakura screeched in terror, but Naruto's feet were attached to the branch. Now looking at them upside down, Naruto laughed mischievously. "Oh man, you guys really fell for it!"

"We were worried about you, baka!"

Kakashi sighed. 'This boy is going to be the end of me one day.'

Then, the unexpected (or maybe the expected, as Shujinko had now idea at this point) occurred. Naruto really slipped this time as he still wasn't completely used to concentrate his chakra in his feet for extended periods of time. The Uzumaki looked terrified, but just as he was starting to fall, Sasuke appeared seemingly out of nowhere and grabbed the Kyuubi Jinchuriki by his left ankle, leaving him hanging like an utter fool.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura squealed.

"Hnh, dobe."

"Shut it, teme!"

* * *

Shujinko decided to join Sasuke and Naruto in their tree-walking exercise. The three of them were pretty much equal now in terms of chakra control, with Shujinko being just a tiny bit better than them but their level was so close it didn't really made a difference. The three Genins now had a single goal: To reach the very top of their respective trees.

Hours passed, and when the moon came to take the place of the sun's light, all of them had reached their goals. Three Genins could be seen at the top of the trees, one smiling satisfied, the other one smirking with pride and the last one grinning like there was now tomorrow.

"Oi dobe, Shujinko, let's head back."

"You got it, Sasuke-teme! I'm starving!"

"Just remember not to puke this time, guys."

Sasuke and Shujinko entered Tazuna's house helping Naruto all the way in. "We did it! We climbed all the way to the top!" Naruto proclaimed loudly.

"Good. Starting tomorrow, you're both bodyguards to Tazuna-san." Kakashi said with an affirmative shook of his head.

After a well-deserved meal, Team 7 and Tazuna were discussing the final details of the mission. In how many days would the bridge be finished, how were they going to replace the workers that had left because of their fear for Gatou (It was agreed that Naruto would use his Kage Bunshins to make everything faster, much to everyone's approval), how Tazuna was going to pay Konoha the price of an A-rank mission once the economy was restored, and so on. Shujinko listened to everything they had to say and voiced his thoughts every once in a while, but remained silent for the most part.

"Why?" Inari whispered out of nowhere, tears flowing freely down his face. "All of this training and talk is just a waste of time. Gatou has an entire army; he'll wipe you out in a minute! All these words of encouragement, they don't mean anything! It's always the same! The strong survives and the weak loses!"

"In that case, our only option here is to be stronger than Gatou." Shujinko concluded, feeling sorry for the boy but not willing to hear him cry and protest every five minutes. It was plain annoying.

Naruto nodded in agreement. "That's right. Speak for yourself. It won't be like that for me, you got that?"

"Why don't you stay quiet!? Just looking at you makes me sick! You don't know anything about this country, you're just butting in! You're always laughing and playing around, you don't have any idea what does it feels to suffer and be treated like dirt!"

That made Naruto freeze. That was the last thing he was going to take from that kid. He knew about suffering all too well due to his tenant. The loneliness, the negligence, being ignored and hated from the very day he was born. He understood that Inari had it bad, because he himself didn't want to imagine his life without the very few people that acknowledged him, but there was no chance he was going to let Inari get away like that without a giving him a piece of his mind. "Listen to yourself, whining and complaining like some sorry little victim. It's pathetic! You can drown in your tears for all I care; you're nothing but a coward!"

"Naruto, you went too far!" Sakura shouted. Naruto didn't even bothered to respond as he stood up and left the kitchen.

Inari was shaking in both fury and sadness. No one, no one had been so direct and harsh to him before. Naruto had basically slapped him in the face with the full force of reality on his behalf. Not knowing what else to do, he stood up and went outside to look at the sea.

"Kakashi-sensei..." Shujinko started to say, not knowing very well what he should do.

"Don't worry, I'll have a talk with Inari soon enough. You should go and rest for tomorrow; we have a long day ahead of us."

Shujinko, although he tried not to show it, felt a chill going down his spine. According to his sensei, Zabuza's wounds should be able to heal for the most part after a week of rest, and he didn't seem like the type of person that waited for an invitation to come. And since it had been a week since their first encounter, Shujinko was almost certain that he and his team were going to have a get-together with him and the Kiri ANBU that helped him escape by tomorrow.

So here were the stats:

A Hatake Kakashi that was still yet to fully recover from his chakra exhaustion from a week ago VS An almost fully healed Momochi Zabuza.

Four Gennins VS An ANBU-level shinobi their age.

Smashing.

* * *

Short and boring chapter is short and boring, I know. I'm planning on making the next two about the bridge fight, however, so I promise things are gonna get a lot more entertaining.

Ja ne!


	9. Chapter 9 (part 6)

**CHAPTER 9: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 6)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's in this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

* * *

"Kakashi-san, are you sure it's wise for you to go to work today? Your body isn't fully recovered, you know." Tsunami said with obvious worry.

The Jounin chuckled. "I'll be fine, don't worry. However, if you could keep an eye on Naruto, that would be great. As usual, he has pushed himself too far lately and will be most likely out for the day. He'll probably stay asleep for several more hours." he said. Tsunami didn't look completely convinced, but nodded anyways.

"Alright everyone, let's get going." Tazuna said eager to finish the bridge as soon as possible.

Shujinko followed the group with extreme caution, almost reluctantly. There was this feeling in his gut that he couldn't get rid of. From now on, the possibility of running into Zabuza and his ANBU associate was not unlikely. Kiri's Demon could be out there watching them in this very moment, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike Tazuna.

When they first fought with him, Kakashi was in top condition, meaning that they had a real shot at killing him. But now, the odds were not as good. This time, Kakashi was functioning around his 70%-80% if Shujinko had to guess. There was also the fact that Naruto was missing, and he played a very important role the first time with his clones and his enormous chakra reserves. To make things even worse, Zabuza would most likely come with his ANBU ally to aid him. Zabuza was definitely going to engage Kakashi for a little payback, meaning that it was up to Shujinko, Sasuke and Sakura to protect Tazuna and deal with the ANBU at the same time. And now that he thought about it, they knew nothing about the abilities of the masked boy, other than he used senbon needles for combat. With Zabuza, at least they were aware that he was very skilled with his giant sword and used water jutsus. The ANBU was pretty much an incognita.

'Ok Shujinko, calm down.' the golden-eyed boy said to himself all the way to the bridge. 'This is only if Zabuza decides to strike today. If he waits until tomorrow, Kakashi-sensei will at least feel a little better and Naruto is going to be with us. Maybe Zabuza won't go after us today, it's only a possibility. Just stay calm and keep your eyes open.'

* * *

When they arrived to the bridge, the sight in front of him caused Shujinko to abandon all hope.

The workers were lying in the bridge, some of them unconscious, all of them severely beaten. Work tools were scattered all over the place and the wooden boxes used for package were destroyed. Shujinko reached for a kunai out of instinct as he observed his surroundings. Clearing his head from any distractive thoughts, Shujinko deduced the only possible perpetrators of this mess were Zabuza and Gatou's thugs. Maybe Zabuza did wanted to wait a little longer before making his move, meanwhile Gatou could've decided to accelerate things by sending his hired killers after Tazuna and his workers.

Wait, hired killers?

Shujinko noticed that none of the workers were dead. Sure, they were bloody, bruised and heavily injured, but still alive at the end of the day. Why would Gatou send his men to beat the bridge workers and not kill them? He had no problem killing Kaiza in front of everybody as a warning, so why would he show mercy towards them? It wouldn't make sense for them to kill only a couple of workers and hide their corpses. Hired killers wouldn't bother to do that unless they were under orders. Maybe Gatou wanted to make another public execution with them? But then again, why would he leave those workers alive? From what Shujinko understood, Gatou was ruthless and didn't care much for anything except his wealth.

With that in mind, there was only one suspect left.

The answer came to them in the shape of a heavy mist that surrounded Team 7 and Tazuna almost instantaneously. It was all too clear now.

"Kirigakure no Jutsu." Shujinko whispered.

"I've been waiting all week for this, Kakashi." a rough voice said somewhere in the mist, although it was rather obvious who was the one talking. "Looks like those brats can't leave your side, huh?"

"Last time I checked, these so-called brats were able to outsmart you. It would be foolish of me not to bring them in case I need help." Kakashi replied with a voice of steel, very unlike his usually lazy tone. Shujinko recognized the change in his demeanor and realized this was not just Kakashi-sensei talking; it was a hardened and cold warrior ready for battle.

"That one's still trembling." Zabuza said with a mock-tone as he appeared in front of them. "Pitiful."

It took Shujinko a while to realize he was referring to Sasuke. Indeed, Sasuke's hand was trembling, yet his face showed anything but cowardice. "I'm not trembling out of fear." Sasuke assured with a smirk. "I'm trembling... out of excitement."

"Big talk, but can you back that up?"

The mist dissipated a little, and just in time for Shujinko to see Zabuza doing a hand sign and creating a water clone. The water clone wasted no time and ran towards Sasuke, who was only aware of the clone by hearing his footsteps. "Sasuke, watch out! He's not the real Zabuza, he's a Mizu Bunshin!" Shujinko informed. Sasuke gave him a brief nod of understanding before throwing a barrage of shurikens at the clone, Shujinko doing the same just a few moments later. With one swing of his sword, 'Zabuza' swatted the first barrage of shurikens away. Five seconds later, a second barrage of shurikens was going his way. The clone attempted once more to swing his sword and deflect the incoming set of weapons.

One of them being a kunai with an inferior exploding tag wrapped around the handle.

Inferior exploding tags were quite basically the same as your everyday exploding tags, with the exception of their considerably lower explosion range. They were created so ninjas wouldn't feel the need to blow everything just to kill their targets. The explosion itself was small, but dangerous enough to kill or at least mortally wound the target upon contact. Normal exploding tags were now saved for occasions like facing multiple enemies at once, since they were more expensive and harder to make in comparison with the 'inferior' version.

Since exploding tags were one of Shujinko's favorite tools, the inferior exploding tags also became part of his arsenal. He had considered using regulars exploding tags against Zabuza, but chose otherwise since the explosions could seriously damage the bridge. The downfall of this tool was that, in order to cause any real injuries, the explosion had to be very close to the target. Shujinko thought about that, and figured they could work well enough on Zabuza's water clones since they only had about 10% of Zabuza's power. Very much like Naruto's shadow clones, one solid hit was enough to dissipate them.

It worked like a charm. The moment 'Zabuza' tried to defend himself, Shujinko activated the exploding tag and, after a brief BOOM, the clone turned into a puddle of water.

'Why didn't I think of this when we first fought his clone?' Shujinko thought somewhat disappointed with himself. Heat of the moment, he supposed.

"Hnh, so your brats have gotten a little better." Zabuza sneered, his respect for Kakashi's students growing just a tiny bit. "You might even find a challenge here, Haku."

"So it seems, Zabuza-sama."

Shujinko didn't even notice the masked boy until he appeared ('more like materialized out of thin air', Shujinko thought) right next to the swordsman. He wore the same clothes as before, just like his emotionless voice tone. "Sensei, what do you think we should do?" Shujinko asked, his gaze never retreating from the two enemies.

Kakashi sighed. "I can't take on these two and expect to win. We'll have to split and engage them individually."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I'll take care of him." he said, referring to the now identified Haku.

"Sasuke, don't be too hasty. Don't forget Shujinko is the second-in-command here. Unless his orders go against mine, you have to do what he commands." Kakashi scolded.

The Ozuma's golden eyes widened in shock. 'Damn! I totally forgot I was the second-in-command of the mission! Ok Shujinko, pull it together. Your sensei and your teammates are counting on you. This is what being a shinobi is like. Think of a strategy like you did back in Kakashi-sensei's bell test. Zabuza is definitely going after Kakashi-sensei, so that means I have to deal with Haku. I can't leave Tazuna-san alone; he'll get killed by Zabuza or Haku at any moment. I suppose I can leave him with Sakura for the time being. Meanwhile, Naruto can use those shadow clones of his to distract him long enough for me and Sasuke to... OH CRAP NARUTO'S STILL SLEEPING AT TAZUNA-SAN'S HOUSE! WHY IN THE HOLY GRANDMOTHER OF KAMI DID HE HAD TO OVERSLEEPT AT A TIME LIKE THIS!' he mentally ranted. "Sensei, I believe it's safe to assume that you will confront Zabuza. Am I right?" Shujinko asked, trying to keep his voice in check. A second-in-command couldn't afford to look desperate, especially in front of his subordinates.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Zabuza and I have unfinished business."

Kiri's Demon chuckled. "You got that right."

"Sakura, stay with Tazuna-san and don't let anyone near him. Protect him at all cost." Shujinko commanded with newfound resolve.

Sakura was taken back by Shujinko's sudden authority display, but quickly nodded. "H-Hai!"

Now Shujinko was looking at the Uchiha heir. "Sasuke, while Kakashi-sensei engages Zabuza, you and I will take on that masked fraud." he said, Sasuke nodding in both understanding and approval at his decision.

"Haku, take care of those two boys, then deal with the girl once you're finished. Hatake is mine and mine alone. Understood?"

"Hai, Zabuza-sama."

With that said, Haku advanced towards Sasuke and Shujinko, using one senbon in each hand as kunais instead of throwing them, and blocked their first attack. Both Ozuma and Uchiha, having trained together for so long now, were able to anticipate each other's movements and proceeded to engage the masked boy with all of their strength.

The two of them quickly realized that a forward attack was not going to work on Haku. They were able to keep up with him in terms of speed, but Haku's superior reflexes allowed him to parry, avoid and block all of their attempts.

Shujinko, thinking of a way to at least conceive some sort of damage, came up with a risky, yet not so crazy idea. While he and Sasuke were struggling against the senbon in Haku's hands, he took advantage on the fact that both his enemy's arms were occupied and, using his left hand, grabbed Haku's right one in a way that he couldn't use his senbon.

With one of Haku's hands immobilized, Shujinko went for a stab. The masked boy had just enough time to kick Sasuke away and use his left arm to block the kunai that was directed to his neck. Now the Ozuma was dealing with both the fake ANBU's hands, and even though he was on par with him in terms of brute strength, Haku had more experience and was more than likely used to fighting in the mist. Shujinko, a Genin born and raised in the Hidden Leaf Village, was not comfortable with having to move around in such a foggy environment. This was Haku's terrain and he had the advantage, not him.

'I can't find any openings.' Shujinko mentally groaned. Not wanting to waste any more time and energy, the brown-haired boy jumped back in order to gain some distance. Haku did the same, and just when he was about to throw his senbon at Shujinko, Sasuke took a couple of shurikens out of his pouch and sent them his way, forcing the masked boy to perform a single hand sign and allow a log of wood to take his place.

"You two are making this unnecessarily complicated." Haku said, his voice just as monotone as ever. "Me and Zabuza-sama have no quarrel with you. The bridge-builder is the only person we're looking for."

Sasuke scoffed at him. "Nice try, but we're not finished with you yet."

Shujinko, despite the situation he was in, couldn't help but roll his eyes in annoyance. Seriously, was arrogance an Uchiha tradition or something? Sure, both of them were talented Genins and all, but they were facing an enemy with unknown abilities (other than magnificent use of senbon needles) who was handling the two of them without even breaking a sweat. What was more, Shujinko was almost sure that Haku was holding back significantly.

That thought was starting to confuse him. From what he knew about Zabuza, the man was coldblooded, ruthless, pretty much around Kakashi's level of strength and a man that certainly wouldn't hesitate to kill a bunch of twelve years-old if he had to. He made that perfectly clear the day they met. It was only natural to assume that the individual working as his right hand would be similar to him in both mind state and skills, or at the very least competent enough to deal with two Genins with little real-life combat experience. This could only mean that Haku was indeed going easy on them. Shujinko felt conflicted as he pondered over that. Evaluating another person's skills through battle was one thing, but to hold back your own strength just to test him was a beginner's mistake. Zabuza would never allow his right hand to do such a thing.

So, what was Haku playing at?

Performing half of the ram handsign, Haku spoke. "Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu." he whispered. The puddle of water that was once Zabuza's clone was brought back to life, now in the form of Haku. "Keep him busy."

'Clone Haku' nodded and ran towards Shujinko in a way that almost caught him off guard. Pulling out another kunai from his left holster, Shujinko had barely enough time to clash his knives against the clone's needles. He winced at the sheer power behind the attack, and was forced to take a step back. In only a couple of seconds, the Ozuma went from searching for an opening to move, dodge and block for his life. And as he avoided the blur that were the arms of 'Clone Haku', Shujinko picked up something strange. Why was the clone putting more effort in killing him than the actual Haku? He was fully aware that Mizu Bunshins only had 10% of Haku's strength, and yet it was doing a better job at trying to get him.

The Ozuma held his own for two other minutes. Then, as he struggled over dominance with his kunais against the clone's senbon, the clone kicked Shujinko in the stomach, sending him flying a couple of meters away and landing on the hard concrete.

"Shujinko!" Sakura cried. She was about to go and help her friend, but Kakashi gestured her to stay back.

"Sakura, don't go in there. I know you want to help, but Shujinko specifically told you to protect Tazuna-san. I have to face Zabuza any minute now, so you'll be on your own. Shujinko entrusted you with the protection of the client, please have faith in him the same way he has faith in you."

Sakura hesitated, but in the end she remained close to Tazuna. It's not like she would do any good out there, but seeing her teammate getting hurt was not easy to watch. She felt so... useless.

Shujinko got on his knees with some difficulty, placing his left hand were the water clone kicked him and narrowing his golden eyes. 'Clone or not, that thing can hit hard. But why didn't the clone took advantage of me? He could've easily killed me while I was on the ground. Haku's either messing with us or there's another reason behind this that I simply cannot imagine.'

'Clone Haku' stared at the boy in front of him, not moving one inch. Shujinko caught a glimpse of the real Haku struggling with Sasuke's kunais using one senbon and performing one handed hand signs with his free hand. Shujinko's eyes widened in shock. 'Hand signs using only one hand!? Is that even possible!?'

Apparently, it was.

"Hijutsu: Sensatsu Suisho."

Sasuke watched in horror as a thousand ice needles came into existence just above him. Half of them were pointing at him, the other half pointing at his teammate. He didn't know what to do. Both his hands were busy struggling against Haku's senbon, so he couldn't attack him directly. But if he didn't move, the ice needles would get to him and end his life. 'Calm yourself.' Sasuke thought, breathing in and out, slowly placating his increasing heartbeats. 'Remember the training. Adjust your chakra and wait for the perfect moment.'

"This is the end for both of you."

Haku lifted his index and middle fingers. The ice needles shot themselves towards Sasuke and Shujinko. In a fraction of a second, Sasuke raised his index and middle fingers as well before the ice needles caught him, pinning themselves into the Uchiha's body.

A scream of pain was heard throughout the bridge.

Haku observed Sasuke's body twitching in agony before passing out... just to be replaced by a log of wood covered in the ice needles he created. 'What!? No way! Kawarimi no Jutsu!?' Haku mentally shouted in disbelief.

"Looks like you're not as fast as you think."

The instant Haku turned around, he was rewarded with a powerful kick to his chest, courtesy of Sasuke. The Uchiha heir was standing on his feet with a defiant smirk, still alive and ready for more.

Meanwhile, Shujinko reacted out of reflex by bringing his palms together and focusing his chakra. "Fuuton: Reppusho!" he yelled, sending a strong gale of wind against the ice needles, redirecting their trajectory towards Haku's Mizu Bunshin. The clone, not expecting a Jutsu of that nature, was not able to dodge in time and turned into a puddle of water after receiving dozens of ice needles. 'Good riddance.' Shujinko thought bitterly, still a little sore after the kick. He quickly made his way to Sasuke.

Zabuza frowned. This was not supposed to be happening. Kakashi's students had certainly improved, but that was not all there was to it. Haku could've killed both of them by now. Why was he holding back against them?

"Just to let you know, you made a big mistake by calling my students a bunch of brats." Kakashi said out loud. "Sasuke is one of the strongest Genins from Konoha, Sakura is one of the smartest kunoichi you'll ever come across, Shujinko has talent and prowess that few possess, and Naruto is the number one hyperactive, knucklehead ninja."

Shujinko allowed himself a moment of pride. Usually, he tried to be modest about his skills, even though he was well aware that he stood out among his peers. Daichi and Masumi were not oblivious to this as they were constantly congratulated for their son, either by Iruka, Mizuki, or any other parent of Shujinko's classmates. Not wanting to raise a child with a superiority complex, they taught him the value of humbleness and politeness from a very young age. It wasn't long before every other mother cooed over him, thinking that his well-manners were adorable.

But this was different. His own sensei was not only acknowledging his abilities, but also taking pride in them. Talent and prowess that few possessed? He wasn't sure about that, but his joy over the praise was too much for him to care.

Zabuza chuckled. "Do you actually think you and your students have a shot at defeating us? How amusing. You've trained your brats well, I'll give you that. However, they are still nothing but a couple of green Genins." he said. His gaze met Haku's. "Haku, it's time to put an end to this farce. Get the job done, now."

"Hai, Zabuza-sama."

It took Shujinko a couple of seconds to notice the change in the atmosphere. The drop in the temperature was so sudden, so fast that his warm body was not able to assimilate the unexpected alteration of the weather right away. Haku was holding his hands in what appeared to be a different version of the Tiger handsign while his body was freely pouring chakra to the outside. The Ozuma deduced Haku was somehow expelling his chakra to alter the temperature, causing the atmosphere to go even colder than before. Considering that Haku was capable of making ice out of the moisture in the air, it made sense that he could do that. But why? What was it that he wanted to accomplish?

"Hijutsu: Makyo Hyosho."

Before either of them could react, Shujinko and Sasuke were suddenly surrounded by what could only be described as a dome of floating ice mirrors. There were a total of twenty-one mirrors floating around; twelve mirrors at ground level, eight mirrors above the first twelve and the final mirror was facing the ground on top of them all. The look of shock was evident in their faces, even more when the image of Haku was suddenly in every mirror they stared at.

Shujinko was still trying to process everything he had witnessed so far. Haku somehow had ice affinity. Shujinko knew for a fact that ice was not part of the five existing elemental chakras. Maybe he had a water affinity so strong that it allowed him to turn water into ice? He had never heard of anything remotely similar to that, except for the Shodaime's infamous Mokuton. In that case, was it possible that the ice was the product of a Kekkei Genkai? That made a little more sense. In fact, it was the only explanation Shujinko could come up with. Following that theory, both he and Sasuke were at clear disadvantage since none of them knew anything about Hyoton. Their only chance now was to somehow survive and hopefully discover a weakness to this Jutsu they could exploit. Because if they didn't, they were pretty much screwed since Naruto was not with them and Kakashi was probably busy with Zabuza.

"You were able to keep up with my speed at first. Let's see if you can still do that." Haku said from one of the top mirrors.

Without warning, Haku threw three senbons to Sasuke, who grunted in pain when the deadly needles met his left shoulder. Shujinko tried to help his comrade, but two senbons in his right thigh prevented him from doing so. He turned around to face the real Haku, but there were only his images posing in the mirrors. Another yelp of pain from Sasuke brought him back to reality, and three other senbons nailed in his left forearm increased his suffering.

Shujinko's reflexes kicked in and, ignoring the pain he was feeling, he grabbed Sasuke by his shirt and pulled him out of his spot. A senbon just below his ribs was his reward, alongside several cuts in all of his body.

'This... is not... good.' Shujinko thought as he gritted his teeth in pain, a trickle of blood going down the left corner of his mouth. 'Those senbon hurt like hell, and I can't keep track of him. He's too fast!'

In an attempt to inflict some damage to his enemy, Shujinko pulled out one of his last kunais from his pouch with an inferior exploding tag wrapped around the handle and threw it to one of the mirrors. Activating the exploding tag, Shujinko narrowed his golden eyes to see how much damage the explosion produced. There was none. The mirror didn't even have a single scratch on it. Haku's image looked as perfect as ever.

"It's useless. You can't hope to break my mirrors with those kinds of attacks." Haku commented from the top mirror.

"Just what are you!?" Sasuke snarled.

"... I am Zabuza-sama's ally and weapon."

'No, really?' Shujinko thought with little humor.

Haku grabbed another set of senbons between his fingers. "If you won't surrender, then I'll have no other choice but to-"

"HERE COME'S UZUMAKI NARUTO, BELIEVE IT!"

Using a couple of smoke bombs as a distraction, Naruto made his flashy entrance to the scene by going through the gap between the mirrors, performing an overly-heroic pose once he was inside the ice mirror dome.

"Alright, listen up everyone! Uzumaki Naruto is ready to kick some misty butt! Come on, let's get started!" Naruto proclaimed with a foxy grin.

For a brief moment, Shujinko forgot the pain he was feeling and was about to punch Naruto square in the face. Don't get him wrong; he was more than relieved to see Naruto here, but the idiot just had to play hero and join them without thinking things through. He could've tried to attack Haku from the outside, join Sakura and Tazuna, or maybe even help Kakashi with his fight with Zabuza. Instead, he decided to trap himself.

"Usuratonkachi." Sasuke growled weakly, thinking among the same lines as Shujinko.

"Naruto, what the hell do you think you're doing!? We were trapped here, and now you're trapped as well!" Shujinko glared at Naruto, who was looking extremely confused.

"Wait... You guys were actually trapped here?"

"Number one hyperactive knucklehead ninja, indeed." Haku mused. 'This boy... he is the one I encountered at the forest the other day.'

Shujinko let out an exhausted sigh. "Well, there's nothing we can do about it now. Naruto, as your team leader, I need you to listen very carefully. This guy uses senbon needles and he is extremely fast. I don't know if there's a way out of these mirrors, so we'll just have to hold on for now. Create a bunch of clones and see if you can touch the real Haku."

"You got it, Shujinko-taichou!" Naruto replied. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Eight solid replicas of Naruto came to existence. Shujinko nodded in approval, ignoring the fact that Shujinko-taichou had a nice ring to it. "These clones will be dispelled with one hit, but at least they should be able to entertain Haku for a while. Besides, Naruto can make a lot more. Sasuke, while Naruto and his clones deal with Haku, use a Katon jutsu to see if you can melt those mirrors. I doubt my Fuuton will be of any help here."

Sasuke said nothing, but the look in his eyes was enough for Shujinko to know that he understood.

'Alright Shujinko, don't screw this up.'

* * *

Sakura couldn't take it anymore. All of her teammates were trapped inside of that ice mirror dome and there was nothing she could do about it.

Or maybe yes?

'No! Remember what Kakashi-sensei said! You are the one protecting Tazuna-san!' Inner Rational Sakura reminded.

'But my teammates are in danger!' Sakura argued inside her head.

'Shujinko ordered you to stay here and protect the client! Have some faith in the guys!'

'And Kakashi-sensei taught me that the ones who abandon their friends are worse than scum!'

'You're not abandoning them! Do you really think you can make a difference if you join them? We both know you won't be of much help there!'

'I know! But... I just can't watch them get killed! There has to be something I can do to help without abandoning Tazuna-san!'

'Oh yeah? Like what? You don't know any jutsu besides Henge, Kawarimi and Bunshin! And your chakra control is not exactly a dangerous weapon.'

Sakura bit her lower lip. Her Inner Rational self did have a point. But even so, she was not going to stand there and do nothing. 'What would Sasuke-kun do? What would Kakashi-sensei do? What would Shujinko do? What would Naruto do?'

Her eyes widened as she recalled something from the past. _"I thought about my teammate's qualities as well as mine. Basically, I devised a strategy were we could use our advantages against you."_

'That's right! Shujinko said that when we passed the bell test. I just have to do the same thing. But how? I don't know any offensive jutsus, and the only weapons I have with me are my kunais, my shurikens and one exploding tag. Those ice mirrors must be very solid if neither Shujinko nor Sasuke-kun has shattered them by now. So maybe I can... attack the mirrors from the outside? With... the exploding tag!'

She carefully wrapped the exploding tag around the kunai's handle, silently praying to Kami that her idea would work. Taking a deep breath, Sakura faced her client. "I'm sorry Tazuna-san, but there's something I have to do."

Tazuna nodded. "Of course."

Holding her weapon with a tight grip, Sakura started running towards the ice mirrors. Her heart was beating fast and her legs were shaky, but she refused to give up. She was useless the first time she and her team battled Zabuza. This time, it was going to be different. Once she was close enough, she jumped and threw the kunai where the top mirror was.

* * *

"Eight Kage Bunshins at your age? That is quite the achievement." Haku said with his head sticking out of the mirror she was in. "However, your clones will not be enough to stop me."

"Ha! Just wait until I get serious!" Naruto replied with his usual confidence. "There's no way I'm gonna lose to you, so get ready to face the future Hokage!"

"Naruto, don't get cocky. You still haven't seen what-"

BOOOOM

Haku was thrown out of his ice mirror dome, landing face-first on the bridge's concrete. Shujinko looked dumbfounded, wondering what on Earth did just happen. He turned around and saw Sakura nearby, who had an awestruck expression in her face, like she was not capable of believing what she just did. Not bothering to ask her what she did, Shujinko narrowed his eyes. "Sakura, get back to Tazuna-san this instant! I know you want to help, but right now you're just gonna get yourself killed!" he barked. He knew she meant well, but in all honesty, Sakura was the member of Team 7 with the lowest chances of survival if she were to fight Haku.

Speaking of which, the masked boy was slowly standing up, his ANBU mask now sporting a couple of cracks but not completely shattered. 'My inferior exploding tag I threw earlier had no effect whatsoever, but a normal exploding tag launched from the outside was enough to throw him out of his mirror.' Shujinko thought frantically, noticing how none of the mirrors were affected by the recent explosion. 'The exploding tag Sakura activated did nothing to the mirrors, but it took Haku by surprise and managed to hurt him at some degree... Wait a minute! Haku's body was not completely inside the mirror when the tag exploded. His head was sticking out. So, the only way to hurt him is to catch him outside of his mirrors and then attack him. But how are we supposed to do that? I can barely see him leaving one mirror before he enters another, and the senbons his clones are throwing are almost impossible to detect, let alone dodge!' "Sasuke, Naruto, we have to attack Haku the moment he leaves from one of his mirrors. In the meantime, we have no other choice but to persevere and wait patiently. He can't hide inside his mirrors forever."

"How are we supposed to persevere when he's constantly attacking us?" Sasuke asked.

"Beats me. But like all jutsus, this one has to end at some point. The more we stay alive, the harder should be for him to maintain this. At least that's the only thing I can come up with."

Behind his mask, Haku narrowed his eyes. 'That boy is intelligent. Even in the situation he's in, he's still able to think clearly and come up with a strategy to fight back. I need to be careful around him.'

"Alright Sasuke, see if you can melt these mirrors. Breaking them is out of the question since not even an exploding tag caused any damage to them. Naruto, be ready to create a crap load of Kage Bunshins. Maybe they won't be able to hurt Haku, but at least they can provide some sort of protection from the senbons. Let's go!"

Performing the necessary hand signs, Sasuke took a deep breath. "Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

A fireball came out of the Uchiha's mouth heading towards Haku's mirror. Once the fire died out, Sasuke narrowed his eyes and growled at the sight. The mirror showed no deterioration whatsoever. "You are going to need a lot more fire than that if you want to melt these mirrors." Haku informed casually, much to Sasuke's annoyance.

"Worth a shot, I guess." Shujinko mumbled.

"You made your move. Now it's my turn."

Shujinko had barely enough time to see Haku leaving his mirror before he was forced to dodge for his life. Senbons were thrown at such staggering speed that Shujinko was now praying that none of them hit any of his vital organs. Naruto's clones were dispelled in a matter of seconds, and Sasuke wasn't doing much better than his brown-haired teammate. After surviving the wave of senbons, Shujinko gritted his teeth and struggled to stand up, his face now sporting several cuts on both his cheeks and his chin.

"These mirrors allow me to attack at unregistered speed. To me, you're moving in slow motion."

"Oh yeah, well good for you!" Naruto growled while trying to get up. "I don't know what kind of weird jutsu is this, but what I do know is that I have a dream and no one will take it away from me! I'm gonna become Hokage one day, and I'll punch my way out of these mirrors if I have to!"

'... A dream?' Haku wondered. "I never wanted to become a shinobi, nor do I want to kill any of you. But if you insist, I'll have no choice but to end your lives, because I have a dream as well. And I will fight for my dreams the same way you do."

"Well let's see who wants it the most! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Ten other clones appeared with a puff of smoke, all of them holding their kunais tightly. With a roar, they jumped against the mirrors in an attempt to catch the masked boy. Just like the last time, they were wiped out before even reaching the mirrors. However, it wasn't all in vain. It was barely visible, but both Shujinko and Sasuke were able to see Haku's figure going from one ice mirror to the other as he annihilated the clones, although with much difficulty. They both shared a look of understanding. Catching Haku off-guard with a single hit was going to be pretty much impossible. But if they focused in covering a larger area instead of going for a precise shot...

"Naruto, make more clones and command them to attack Haku. You stay right here!" Sasuke commanded.

"Don't go ordering me around, teme! Shujinko is the captain around here, not you!"

"Just do what I say, dobe!"

Naruto glanced at the Ozuma, who gave him a brief nod of consent. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" he yelled, and thirteen other clones came into existence.

'They don't seem like they are giving up.' Haku mentally groaned, not liking how things were going. With a handful of senbons, he started decimating the little group of Narutos.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

"Fuuton: Daitoppa!"

The wind-enhanced fireball engulfed the remaining clones. Haku winced in pain as his right ankle was slightly caught by the flames seconds before he could enter one of his ice mirrors for protection. His mirrors may be impervious to fire, but he certainly wasn't.

Sasuke smirked. 'That one got him. I'm starting to get the timing.'

Shujinko found himself smirking as well. 'Haku will be at disadvantage if one of us attacks from the outside. We know it, and he knows it. If one of us tries to escape this dome, he'll have no other option but to get out of whatever mirror he's hiding in order to keep us here. That's when we have to make our attack. Even if we can't get out by ourselves, Haku will be wasting time and chakra, making it harder for him to keep this jutsu working. If we continue like this, maybe we can get out of here alive.'

"Naruto, we will need more of your clones." Shujinko ordered. "How much chakra do you have left?"

Naruto panted, then let out a wide grin. "Enough to kick this guy's butt!"

"Good. One more time, guys!"

"Alright! Kage Bunshi-"

"No more games!" Haku snapped as he threw a barrage of senbons to the three Genins. This time, Haku was a lot less lenient and Shujinko was not able to react in time. Eleven senbons made their way towards the golden-eyed boy's body; landing on his hip, shoulders, knees, collarbone, chest, ribs and thighs. Shujinko fell to the ground, shaking in pain and fighting to keep his consciousness. More blood started to come out of his wounds.

"You have no chance of escaping from my house of mirrors. Stand down, it's useless to try."

Putting his hand in the ground for support, Shujinko tried to get up one more time. He was feeling suffocated, almost intoxicated. His head was hurting like crazy and his heart was beating faster than ever. His vision became blurry and his eyes were burning. For a moment, he felt like he was about to pass out, but he refused to. He was fighting for his life as well as the lives of his teammates, and neither of them were giving up even though they were experiencing the same pain as his. He was not giving up.

He was not giving up, damn it!

Then, something snapped inside his head.

It lasted for a second. His pounding chest slowed down and the cloudiness of his mind started to fade away. For some reason, his own chakra felt weird, almost foreign to him. His burning eyes were cooling down now, and when he fully opened them once again, he didn't know what to think. Everything started to look more... defined, and so much more detailed. Those were the only adjectives he could come up with. His vision kept adjusting itself to the point where he could barely recognize his surroundings.

'What's happening to me?' Shujinko asked himself in slight panic. Was he under a Genjutsu? Were those senbons poisoned? 'My eyesight... I see everything different now. I feel like... like I can observe even the tiniest of details. But why? What's the meaning of this?' He glanced at Naruto, who had several senbons stuck in his back. The blond Genin was facing the ground, unable to get up despite his best efforts. Sasuke was still on his feet, but his posture and trembling indicated that his body was failing him.

"Are you ready to say good bye?" Haku asked rhetorically before throwing a couple of senbons to Sasuke.

As this happened, Shujinko noticed two things. A) For some reason, he was now able to catch Haku's movements like he was moving at normal speed. B) Sasuke somehow managed to anticipate Haku's attack. Grabbing a senbon from the ground, the Uchiha deflected the incoming weapons one by one.

'What!? How was he able to swat them away? No one should be capable of doing that, specially a child!' Haku mentally ranted, thankful for having his ANBU mask with him to cover the awestruck expression in his face.

"Get up, dobe! We have to fight back!" Sasuke growled at Naruto, who begrudgingly obliged.

"I kno-know that... teme." he groaned.

Haku decided to try something different. He knew Naruto was the most weakened boy out of the three, and wouldn't stand a chance against his speed and accuracy. The raven-haired boy was hurting as well, yet he was still able to deflect the senbons he threw earlier. Lastly, the golden-eyed boy was faring better than Naruto, but he seemed exhausted, and utterly confused for a reason.

The perfect target.

Using his supernatural speed, Haku sent another set of senbons towards Naruto. Then, he faced Shujinko and did the same to him. Sasuke may be fast enough to deflect his senbons once, but it was impossible for Shujinko to follow his movements.

Shujinko's eyes widened as he saw the incoming barrage of needles going his way. Instinct took control of his body, and without a second to spare, he pulled out the last kunai out of his pouch and swatted them away. Meanwhile, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's semi-unconscious body and jumped out of the way, saving his teammate and himself.

Haku came close to gawk at the sight. 'This is impossible! That boy was also able to block my senbons, even though minutes ago he could barely move! And that Sasuke, he dodged my attack and protected his teammate at the same time! I may have spent a lot of energy so far, but my movements are still way too fast for the human eye to register. How... How are they doing it?'

He wasn't the only one feeling surprised. Shujinko was unable to comprehend how did his body acted when he saw the incoming senbons. His reflexes were much sharper than before, and he was now able to actually see the weapons going his way. His chakra... it felt like it was constantly flowing inside of him.

Shujinko glanced at Sasuke. His eyes were blood-red, showing two tomoes on his right eye and one on his left.

Sasuke glanced at Shujinko. His black pupils were four times bigger than before, and the rest of his eyes were covered by his golden Irises. Yellow line marks covered his lower eyelids in an horizontal fashion, starting from his lacrimal papillas.

Two Kekkei Genkais had awoken.

* * *

That's chapter 9 for y'all.

Sorry for the delay. Had some Wi-Fi problems back home, so I couldn't post this earlier.

Surprise, surprise... Shujinko has a Kekkei Genkai! How does it work? What is supposed to do? What's the story behind? All of your questions shall be answered in the next chapter. Also, you may not have noticed this, but I'm making the original Haku fight noticeably different. Not just because Shujinko is there, but because the original fight was, in my opinion, unrealistic at some points. The perfect example would be Sasuke taking down seven of Zabuza's clones in one go, when a week ago he was struggling to fight just one clone. I don't know about you, but I think that's pretty illogical.

Kirigakure no Jutsu Hidden Mist Jutsu

Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu Water Clone Jutsu

Hijutsu: Sensatsu Suisho Secret Jutsu: A Thousand Needles of Death

Fuuton: Repuusho Wind Style: Wind Gale Palm

Hijutsu: Makyo Hyosho Secret Jutsu: Crystal Ice Mirrors

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu Shadow Clone Jutsu

Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu

Fuuton: Daitoppa Wind Style: Great Breakthrough

Ja ne!


	10. Chapter 10 (part 7)

**CHAPTER 10: A C-RANK TO REMEMBER (PART 7)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

 _'Flashback'_

 _"Flashback talk"_

* * *

The two Genins couldn't help but stare at each other for a brief moment, an awestruck expression on both their faces.

Of course, Sasuke already knew what happened to him. At last, the legendary Sharingan, his clan legacy and blood right, had awoken. The change was... surprisingly quick and fast to adjust, like his brain had been wired from his birth to adapt the newfound power of his eyes. 'It's not complete, but now I can advert his movements that much easier.' he thought. 'But what happened to Shujinko? His eyes are different, and I can see some sort of strange chakra surrounding his body. Something is definitely going on here, but now is not the time. We have to focus on defeating Haku and escape from this jutsu.'

Shujinko was close to losing his composure due to the light of the recent events. Haku's ice mirrors, Sasuke's Sharingan and whatever the heck it was that occurred to him was enough to give him a migraine. He caught a glimpse of his reflection in one of the mirrors and gasped at the sight. His pupils were huge to say the least, and the yellow marks that covered his eyes and cheekbones left him speechless. 'Gah! Why in the name of Kami do I have these yellow marks on my face? And what happened to my pupils? They are as big... No, bigger than Hinata's, and she's a Hyuuga for crying out loud! Whatever this is, it needs an explanation. Maybe Kakashi-sensei knows about this. I'll have to ask him... once we get out of this mess.'

Meanwhile, Haku was getting ready for another assault. Only this time, he needed a different approach. 'I have to finish this as soon as I can. My jutsu takes a lot of chakra to activate and maintain. If I keep wasting time, I will be at terrible disadvantage against them. There is no point in attacking them directly since both of them will dodge my senbon. But if I separate them, immobilize one and attack the other...'

With his Sharingan, Sasuke was able to predict Haku's senbon needles directed to his feet. He merely jumped to his right, his gaze never leaving Haku's. The instant his feet left the ground, Haku focused his attack on Shujinko. Once again, with the use of his kunais, the golden-eyed boy swatted them away, although not with ease. He was feeling tired and absolutely dumbfounded by his... transformation, for lack of a better term. Right now, he needed to put all his doubts inside a box and release them later. He was too busy deflecting the needles coming his way to realize one of Haku's clones was inside in one of the mirrors behind.

"Shujinko, look out!" Sasuke warned. 'Damn it! He attacked me at the beginning just to draw my attention and distance myself from Shujinko!'

Too late. As Shujinko deflected the last senbon, eleven more were nailed on his back before he could even turn around.

His eyes grew wide in shock and pain. The senbon needles hit different parts of his shoulder blades and spine, where the nervous system linked to his arms was most vulnerable. The pain was so crushing that he couldn't even scream. His arms felt wobbly, almost dead. He dropped his kunais and fell to the ground on one knee, his head inches away from the ground barely able to keep his consciousness and breathing hard. 'I... can't... move! My body... is not... responding. What the... hell... am I... supposed... to do... now!?'

"Your arms are completely useless now, and your back is out of commission as well. You are done fighting. All of you are done fighting." Haku said out loud before launching himself towards Naruto, who was still out cold.

It all happened in a blink of an eye.

Haku charged against Naruto.

Sasuke received the incoming senbon needles and threw Haku against the mirrors.

Sasuke started to bleed. A lot.

Naruto woke up

"You just... had to... get in the way... usuratonkachi." Sasuke said, his voice shaky.

Naruto blinked. "Huh?"

"Always the dobe... Your stupidity... never ceases to... amaze me."

"Teme, you won!" Naruto shouted in happiness, not noticing just how injured both his teammates were. "And you too, Shujinko! Wow, we sure make an awesome team! I can't wait to tell Kakashi-sensei how we-"

And then he noticed.

To say that Sasuke looked bad was the understatement of the year. His body had senbons nailed everywhere, his skin was paler than usual, and blood was pouring out of his wounds. His ebony eyes were almost blank. Shujinko had his fair share of senbon pinned on his body as well, two of them buried deep into his shoulder blades. His mouth and golden-eyes were wide open, looking at his teammates in absolute horror, like he was not able to comprehend the scene in front of him.

"Sasuke... no..." Shujinko whispered.

Realization dawned upon Naruto. "Teme... why? Why did you saved me?"

Sasuke let out a dry chuckle before coughing out more blood. "The hell do I know? My body... moved on its own. I had... no control."

"But you hated me! And I hated you! So why did you protected me!? I never asked you to do it!"

"Just deal with it... dobe." Sasuke said before falling to the ground. Naruto was able to catch him just in time, tears gathering in his cerulean eyes.

'No... No... Sasuke, please don't die. Please don't die.' Shujinko thought in desperation. What had he done? He allowed his teammate to die. Uchiha Sasuke, his rival and friend, was dying in front of him and there was nothing he could do about it.

"That man... he's still out there." Sasuke started to say. "Uchiha Itachi. I promised myself... I wouldn't die... before he did. Naruto... Shujinko... don't let... your dreams fade away."

A groan, and then silence.

'Sasuke, you really are...'

Tears started flowing freely down Shujinko's cheeks. Sasuke was dead. His friend was dead.

And it was all his fault.

How could it be not? He was the leader of the group, the one who suggested being the second-in-command. He honestly thought he could handle the responsibility of fulfilling the mission and protect his friends. They believed in him. Kakashi believed in him. He believed in himself, too. All those praises he received back at the Academy? All those compliments from his past teachers? Lies, all lies. If those words were true, then he should've been able to save his comrades and find a way out of the mess they were in. But no, he failed.

He fought as hard as he could, he thought about every possible way to beat Haku, he never backed down from the fight and always kept the hope of winning inside his heart. And yet...

He had let his comrade, his friend to die.

He was worse than scum.

"Is this the first time you two have seen a friend die in battle?" Haku asked inside of his mirror. "This is part of what it means being a shinobi. If you don't accept death as something natural and even expected from us ninja, then you won't have a future."

 **"Shut up..."** Naruto growled, still hugging the body of his deceased friend. His voice was suddenly dark and ferocious, worthy of the foulest of demons. **"Damn it, teme... I hated you too. But even so... I'm going to kill you. I swear I'm going to kill you!"**

Naruto's body started to release some foreign kind of chakra, clearing the moisture out of the atmosphere. Despite what had happened to Sasuke, Shujinko couldn't help but somewhat forget about him as he watched his other friend tremble. He wasn't trembling out of fear. He wasn't trembling out of excitement. He was trembling out of rage, a rage so pure and wide it was surreal. Unlike normal sky-blue chakra, the spiraling chakra that the Uzumaki was engulfing himself with was reddish, almost crimson. Shujinko found himself panicking. The staggering force behind the killing intent was making him hyperventilate. He was starting to lose his breath, and it took everything out of him not to start crying out of fear. The killing intent that Zabuza released when they first encountered him was like a breeze, a mere nuisance compared to this one. The one who wrote the shinobi rule that stated how shinobi should never show fear in battle CLEARLY never felt something like this.

To make things even scarier, Naruto didn't even looked the same anymore. His usually thin whiskers were suddenly way bigger and thicker than before. His cerulean eyes were now dark red, and his pupils morphed into slits. The nails on both his hands grew a full centimeter. His spiky blond hair was suddenly bigger and spikier, and looked every bit as sharp as a fresh kunai set. His fangs got bigger and sharper as well, similar to those of a wild predator. His body pretty much started spitting away the senbons he had inside itself, and his previous wounds were healed in an instant. Shujinko could've sworn that, for a brief moment, the head of a fox was on top of the mountain of evil chakra that was pouring out of Naruto.

'Naruto, who... what are you?' Shujinko thought. That thing in front of him, that... creature. He had no idea if the being in front of his eyes was Naruto or a demon.

He was THIS close to pissing himself.

Suddenly, Naruto doubled over and got on his hands and legs, imitating an enraged animal who was about to jump on his prey. Before Shujinko could even assimilate what was going to happen, Naruto started galloping his way towards the image of Haku.

That was the last thing he saw before he lost his consciousness...

* * *

'Am I... dead?' Shujinko wondered as his eyes slowly started to open, his vision blurry at first.

He started to slowly breath, scared that he might be heard should he breathe too loud. His arms were still numb and useless, mind you.

Wait a minute, why should he be scared? What caused him to black-out (yes, black-out during his third real fight. How unfitting for a shinobi. He wondered if, should they ever come back to Konoha, this little incident could be left out of the report. This was going to be one secret he'd very much rather keep to himself) during his fight with the masked fraud? Where were all of the mirrors? Where was Naruto?

Naruto...

What happened to him? What was that evil chakra that took over him? How did that cheerful idiot suddenly became as fearful as the Shinigami himself?

His mental rant was cut off by the sound of a voice he knew all too well by now. "... I have failed you, Zabuza-sama. I am nothing but a broken weapon now. Naruto-kun, please, I beg of you... Kill me now."

"W-What!?"

Shujinko spotted two figures not too far away from him. It was Naruto, who thank Kami looked like himself now, or at least that chakra born out of bloodlust seemed to be gone. In front of him stood the masked boy...

And it was a girl all of this time.

Anyways, the masked GIRL (because lets be reasonable here, there was no way in hell someone could have that face and hair AND NOT be a girl) had her nose broken, a black eye and both corners of her mouths were bleeding profusely. She had a blank look on her face, as if she was telling Naruto the most obvious thing in the world. She wasn't much older than either Shujinko or Naruto, two or three years older at the very most.

"Why do you hesitate? Did I not hurt your comrades? Didn't I tried to kill you?"

"I'm not doing anything until you tell me why you followed Zabuza like that! You're a human being, not a weapon or a slave!"

"Oh, but I was his weapon. He gave me a purpose, a reason to keep living. When I was with him... I felt complete, like I didn't need anyone else because he was the one who took me in when no one would and gave me his company when I was alone. Have I been nothing but his tool all of this time? That's not important to me. What's important to me is that... he made me feel special. He was the reason of my existence. But now, I've failed him. Zabuza-sama has no use for broken tools. I have become the living definition of useless."

"Oh yeah? Well too bad for you! I'm not some weapon for my village, and I know exactly what you'd been through! The sadness, the loneliness, the feeling that no one cares about you, I know that just as well as you do! The way of the shinobi is not to kill until you're the last man standing, there's heck of a lot more than just that! Killing people isn't the only way to prove others how strong you are!"

"Please, Naruto-kun. If you don't kill me, I will kill myself. What difference does it makes? You're a shinobi; you WILL have to kill one day, so why not now?"

"... Are you absolutely positive that there's no other way? To die by my hand... is that what you truly want?"

"Yes."

Naruto seemed to hesitate, and Shujinko couldn't blame him. To take another one's life... it scared him, and the fact that he was going to kill one day scared him even more. He always told himself that he would have his first kill when he was ready, when his heart was hardened enough and when the time was right. Such a fool he had been. He could never dictate when he was going to kill another man; that was something completely out of his hands. The way of the shinobi was one of the harder, if not the hardest, lifestyles to ever exist. People killed each other. Boys killed each other. Girls killed each other. All for the sake of their village.

Their village?

Shujinko realized the depth of his naivety. He grew up hearing tales of powerful shinobi of Konohagakure no Sato, like Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama, Jiraiya, Senju Tsunade, Orochimaru (although he didn't particularly admired this one), Namikaze Minato, Uchiha Madara (and neither this one) Sarutobi Hiruzen, and many more. Their names were known all throughout the Elemental Countries, and their fame was right on par with their strength. He? He was just a kid from a humble civilian clan, no one particularly interesting.

He wanted to change that. He wanted to prove that he could be just as strong as the legendary shinobi of their village. He wanted to be considered as one of Konoha's top shinobi one day, clan-born or not. That was the reason he trained so hard, his desire to be recognized and respected. He never really considered the village to be his fuel. Sure, he loved his home, but he didn't push himself to his limits for the sole purpose of protecting his village.

Was he selfish?

The Uzumaki's voice woke him up from his train of thought. "You know... I have a feeling that we could've been friends if we had met in a different place and in another circumstance." he said. The next thing he did was to pull out a kunai out of his holster and started running towards the girl, who made no effort to move whatsoever. "This is for Sasuke, because he also had a dream!"

'He's not messing around. He's really going to kill her.'

TAP

Shujinko's eyes widened as he saw the girl holding Naruto's hand, stopping his attack. Determination clearly written on her face.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. I may be of some use to Zabuza-sama one last time."

'What's going on? One moment she's begging Naruto to kill her, and all of a sudden she wants to help Zabuza once more?' Shujinko thought. The girl started doing hand signs with one hand. 'Is she going to attack him!?' "Naru...to." Shujinko tried to warn him, but he simply couldn't. He was feeling too weak to even yell. Imagine his surprise when, instead of attacking his teammate, the girl simply vanished. 'She said she wanted to help Zabuza one last time. That can only mean... She's going to attack Kakashi-sensei!'

"Huh? What the... Where'd he go!?

'He? Don't you mean she?' "Naruto..."

Naruto turned around to see his teammate lying on his stomach, a dozen senbons pierced on his back. "Shujinko! You're ok!" he shouted as he made his way to his friend.

"Ka-Kakashi-sensei... is in danger. Naruto... you have to... help him."

The mist dissipated all of a sudden. Both Naruto and Shujinko looked up. Kakashi had his right fist inside the girl's chest, blood staining both their clothes. Zabuza was already swinging his enormous sword, attempting to cut Kakashi in half, not minding that his ally was right in front of him. 'That what she meant by being of use one last time. Whatever Kakashi-sensei's attack was, she used her own body as a shield for Zabuza.' Shujinko was quickly to put two and two together. Kakashi had barely enough time to grab the youth's corpse and jump back, carefully closing her eyes and placing him on the ground.

"Heh, looks like Haku has given me a second chance, Kakashi. Picking him up when he was a young boy was a smart move on my behalf, wouldn't you agree?" Zabuza taunted, apparently unaffected by the fact that the child he raised died for him.

'So, Haku is... a boy, then?' Shujinko thought, close to suffering a migraine. 'That was... unexpected.'

Kakashi gave Zabuza a hateful glare. "You really are the worst kind of scum on Earth."

"Enough talk. Let's see if you can keep it up."

Both A-Class ninjas straightened up, and Zabuza was the first to attack. He charged against Kakashi, swinging his sword in a horizontal fashion. Kakashi merely ducked. Taking advantage of the momentum created after his first attempt, Kiri's Demon swung his sword down, but Kakashi stepped aside and kicked Zabuza's stomach hard, making him double over. The silver-haired Jounin took his chance and punched his enemy across his face, sending Zabuza a couple of meters away.

Zabuza brought his hand to his bandaged mouth. There was a crimson liquid escaping from his lips. He looked up at Kakashi, who was simply staring at him with narrowed eyes. He wasn't moving. Heck, his body wasn't even tense.

Shujinko also noticed this. While Zabuza kept trying to split his sensei in half, the Sharingan user seemed relax, for lack of a better word. He didn't do any exaggerated movements and his timing was impeccable, like he knew the perfect moment to step out of the line of attack. In one occasion, Kakashi jumped over Zabuza and managed to nail two kunais into his left arm. The swordsman screamed in pain and tried to slash Kakashi once more, but he was already out of reach.

'What's going on!? Why can't I keep up with him!? He's barely using his Sharingan, and yet I can't even touch him!'

"What's wrong? Can't fight anymore? I guess I expected too much from the demon of Kirigakure."

"Shut up and let me kill you, you damn coward!"

Ire quickly took control over Zabuza's body, and his sense of reason was slowly fading away. At first, Kakashi would evade the sword coming his way and then push the swordsman away. But now, the Hatake didn't even let Zabuza near him. As soon as Zabuza tried to attack, Kakashi would quickly respond by intercepting him and stop whatever he attempted to do. And the more hits he received, the more Zabuza would grow desperate. It didn't took long before both his arms were useless, his right arm now sporting two kunais buried deep inside just like his left arm. Zabuza no longer had the ability to swing his sword, or even hold it for that matter. The Kubikiribocho was unceremoniously dropped, making a metallic sound.

"Now Zabuza, what are you going to do? Both tour arms are completely incapacitated. You can't even perform hand signs or lift a shuriken." Kakashi stated.

"Why you-!

"My, my, such a disappointing show." a voice echoed from the end of the bridge. Shujinko lifted his gaze to see a short man with a huge group of thugs behind his back. The short man in question was wearing a fancy suit with a yellow shirt and a purple tie (horrible combination if you asked Shujinko). He was holding a staff with his right arm while his left was covered in heavy bandages, indicating that his wrist was probably broken or in very bad condition. He had long chestnut chair, although it was clear the man was going bald. His face literally spelled the word 'smugness'. There were about forty to sixty armed thugs behind him, if Shujinko had to guess. "Look at you, Zabuza. You look worse than trash."

"Gatou." Shujinko whispered. It took one good look at him for Shujinko to know that the man was an insufferable twat.

Kiri's Demon frowned. "Gatou, what the hell do you think you're doing here!?"

Gatou chuckled. "Ah, of course. You might be wondering why am I here. You see, there's been a minor change of plans. Originally, I wanted you to kill Tazuna and get this whole headache done with. But then, I had a better idea. Instead of letting you kill the bridge-builder and those kids guarding him, I decided to hire these fine gentlemen and ordered them to kill you, the bridge-builder and his ninja. There's no need to pay a dead man. Smart idea, if I do say so myself."

'That bastard!' Shujinko thought angrily. He hated Zabuza, but even that was a foul thing to do to him. He couldn't help but compare Gatou with Tazuna. Both of them had hired ninja for a certain task, and both of them lied to their respective shinobi. Still, Tazuna had lied to them in hopes of building the bridge and eradicate the poverty and suffering of his people. Gatou? That worthless scumbag only cared for his disgusting fortune and couldn't care less about the ones he wronged, just as long as his pockets were filled with ryos. There was no point in comparing them. Tazuna, while not exactly truthful at first, was honest most of the time and was willing to put his life on the line for the good of the villagers. Gatou was a greedy, simple-minded, backstabbing pig.

Zabuza looked absolutely murderous. "You gotta be kidding me."

"Of course, some of these associates are rather expensive. So if you could take some of them out before they kill you, I'd be most grateful." Gatou said. His hired thugs started laughing, thinking that they were more than able to take down the injured ninja and get their payment.

Silence, then Zabuza spoke. "Well, since I'm no longer working for Gatou, I don't care what happens to Tazuna from this point on. Our fight is over, Kakashi. I have no quarrel with you."

'Oh please! Like Kakashi-sensei is gonna forgive you that easily!' Shujinko mentally scoffed.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Kakashi responded, much to Shujinko's shock.

'What!? They were at each other's throats not a minute ago, and now they stopped fighting just because of a broken contract?'

Shujinko had no idea what to make of it. How can you be so determined to kill someone and then let him go 'just because my contract is broken'? Zabuza, that man was fully intending to kill them when they were on their way to Nami no Kuni. He lashed out Haku on him and Sasuke as well now. He wanted nothing more than to just kill them and Tazuna... and all of the sudden he shrugged everything off and proclaims that he had no quarrel with them? Just like that? Was that really his way? Was that really the shinobi way?

Meanwhile, Naruto helped his teammate to get up. Unfortunately, the senbons on his back prevented him from walking on his own, as the weapons were intended to paralyze his shoulders (and arms by extent) and spine. He was able to move his legs, but had no control over his back. Naruto took Shujinko's right arm, passed it over his shoulders and slowly made his way to his sensei, careful not to inflict any more damage to his abused teammate.

"Shujinko, are you alright?" Kakashi asked.

'What do you think?' Shujinko thought bitterly. He thought it was pretty obvious that he was not in the best shape ever. "I can't move my arms or walk on my own, sensei." Shujinko summarized.

Gatou approached the corpse of Haku, smirking ever so slightly. "Now that I remember, this little punk caused me a great deal of pain back then. It's time to get some retribution." Using his good hand, Gatou struck Haku's face with his staff. "Oh, if only he could feel this. It almost makes me want him to be alive."

Naruto's eyes widened so much his eyeballs were almost coming out of their place. "Get away from him, you bastard!" he shouted in pure rage. He forgot for a moment that he was carrying Shujinko, and almost dropped him. "Come on, Zabuza! Are you gonna let him do that and get away with it!?"

"Shut it, gaki." was Zabuza's reply. "Haku's dead, so why should I care?"

"What!? So you're just gonna stand there and watch him get treated like a street dog!? You and Haku were together since he was a kid!"

"You really are dense, aren't you? You clearly don't understand the way of us shinobi. The same way Gatou used me, I used Haku. I didn't cared about him, I cared for his skills. His prowess and abilities? Oh, I'll sure miss them. The kid? Not at all."

The Kyuubi Jinchuriki growled at him. "If that's what you really think, then you're the most worthless human I've ever seen."

"Agreed." Shujinko said, glaring at Kiri's Demon.

"Alright, you two. Calm down. Zabuza is no longer our enemy." Kakashi stepped in, but Naruto spoke even louder.

"I don't care! As far as I'm aware, that guy is our worse enemy! You are an ungrateful piece of trash, you know that? He did everything for you, and you just treated him like dirt! And even then, you were the most important thing on the world for him. He sacrificed everything for you, he was devoted to you, he made you his priority above all things, and you just say that you'll only miss his abilities? You never allowed him to have a dream of his own, yet he didn't care! That's how much he loved you! He even gave his life for you and your selfish dream! And now, you just toss him away like some... some broken tool? That... that's just w-wrong." Naruto said, tears now flowing freely.

Against his will, Shujinko let a tear roll down his cheek. He couldn't help it. He really didn't want to be seen crying, whether it was during a ninja mission or in his home. But the whole thing was so sad, so heartbreaking that his feelings just couldn't stay inside any longer. Sasuke's departure, Naruto's malevolent outburst and now this. It was simply too much for him to handle. The rule number 25 of the shinobi way was to never show your feelings while doing a mission, for they did nothing but get in the way and cloud your judgement and sense of duty. Shujinko did his best to always keep in mind these precepts, even if some of them went against his beliefs. But now, all of a sudden, he found himself not caring for the shinobi rules. Not one bit.

They weren't the only ones shredding tears.

"You talk too much, gaki. Have you ever heard that one before?" Zabuza asked, his voice now restrained and slightly shaky. "Your words cut deep, deeper than whatever you can imagine. While he fought the two of you, his heart was aching. Unlike what I told myself, Haku did had feelings. He was always too kind and gentle. He also felt pain and suffering, and now, I feel those things as well. Even so, I'm content with ending things like this." he said before biting off the bandages that covered half of his face, revealing a bloody mouth with sharp teeth. He looked back at the two Genins, who were looking at him with an awestruck expression. "What's the matter? You didn't thought I was human? Even shinobi are human, no matter what the others say about us or what we say about ourselves, we always fail to abandon our humanity. I know I failed." he added with a bitter chuckle. "Oi, gaki. Hand me over your kunai."

Naruto hesitated for a while before tossing him the last kunai he had with him, as if he didn't cared anymore. "Here."

The swordsman caught the kunai with his mouth and launched off towards the crowd. Gatou hurriedly backed away, ordering his thugs to eliminate Zabuza. Kiri's Demon started to stab, slash, jump, push and kick his way to the businessman. Eventually, people caught him from behind and thrusted their weapons into his back. However, that didn't stop his rampage and kept going on, ignoring the increasing suffering. It didn't take him long before he jumped over the last thug and ran towards Gatou, who was wetting his pants in fear. Finally, having the short man cornered, Zabuza reached him and stabbed him in his stomach. Gatou coughed blood and stared at the dying man. Soon, five spears were thrusted into the swordsman's back, who now sported a total of eight weapons on him.

"Y-You... filthy... ra-at. I'm not go... gonna l-let you k... kill m-me! I wo-won't be... joining that... b-brat of yo-yours!"

"Oh Gatou, neither of us will be joining Haku. No, we can't follow him. We're going to that other place, just the two of us." Zabuza said, getting closer and closer to Gatou as he said every word. "As a demon ninja, I honestly can't think of a better place for me to go. How about you, Gatou? I've been told that there are lots and lots of demons down there, of different sizes and shapes. Oh yeah, I'll fit there just fine. But you? You are going to suffer a long and painful eternity!"

Zabuza pulled the kunai out of Gatou's stomach and proceeded to stab him in different parts: his torax, his solar plexus, his chest, etc. Finally, with one last go, Kiri's Demon buried the bloody kunai deep inside the businessman's throat and pushed him out of the bridge. The sound of something falling into the river was heard, and all of Gatou's hired killers took a step back when Zabuza turned around and started walking towards the corpse of Haku.

Both Shujinko and Naruto were gawking at the gruesome spectacle. You couldn't really blame them, either. They just witnessed their first death, and it hadn't been a pretty one. Of course, death wasn't exactly a beautiful thing to watch, but there was a huge difference between watching someone peacefully dying while they were sleeping and watching someone make five new holes in another man's body with a kunai and pushing the body into the river. The difference was simply too much. Kakashi saw everything with a blank expression as he was no stranger to violent deaths. Kami knew he had seen enough death for a lifetime. But the two Genins were just that: Genins. This was their first time witnessing one man taking another one's life, and they were still processing what they just saw.

In that moment, Zabuza fell to the ground, unable to keep himself walking due to the extreme blood loss, his fatigue and the overall pain in his back. Shujinko stared at Zabuza's immobile body while Naruto looked away. "Naruto, don't look away." Kakashi said. "When you live like a warrior, that's how things can end."

Shujinko was about to respond, but a voice boomed behind them. "Naruto! Shujinko!" They both turned around. In front of them were Sakura and Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun is alive! He survived!"

True enough, Sasuke was standing there right next to her, He still looked like crap, but crap that was still alive. Sasuke stared at them for an instant before turning his head away while raising his left hand in a saluting manner.

The Ozuma felt his heart go down to his waist and then all the way back up to his chest, sighing in relief. Sasuke wasn't dead. 'Thank you, Kami'. But why wasn't he dead? Was it just a temporary death-state? It was most likely, considering Haku's perfect aim. But why Haku did that? And why didn't Haku killed him while he was at it? With all those senbons, he could've easily done that. He had been at his mercy. He could've-

 _"...Unlike what I kept telling myself, Haku did had feelings. He was always too kind and gentle..."_ Zabuza's voice echoed inside his mind.

'That's it.' Shujinko thought as he realized what happened. 'He never had the intention of killing any of us'.

It all made sense now. Haku could've killed the both of them right from the very start, but he chose not to. The masked boy had been holding back all of the time, because deep inside he was gentle and did not liked killing. Why would someone as brutal as Zabuza keep an individual unable to take on two or three Genins? It wasn't like he couldn't kill them despite his efforts. He could've eliminated them with ease, but chose not to. Now that he thought about it, the senbon injuries, although they hurt like hell, weren't deadly. Sure, his body was littered in them and couldn't move his arms or stand on his own, but he wasn't suffering a critical health situation, and neither was Sasuke.

"Well, well, surprises just keep popping out of nowhere." Kakashi said casually, although Shujinko noticed a hint of relief in his voice. Obviously, he didn't want to come back to Konoha with one less pupil.

"Oi, don't forget about us!" one of the remaining thugs shouted. "You see, Zabuza here just killed our source of income, and there's no way we're getting out of here empty-handed. I suppose we don't have much choice but to raid the village and see what we can get. You heard that, boys!?" The other thugs cheered in agreement.

Shujinko frowned. This was not good. Under normal circumstances, a group of undisciplined hired-killers wouldn't stand a chance against a shinobi. Even a Genin was capable of defeating a grown man with a weapon. But this was different. Zabuza only took out a portion of the original thugs, and there were still forty of them standing and ready to fight. Next, no member of Team 7 was fit to keep fighting: Sasuke was still coming out of a near-death state, so his muscles and nervous system were still recovering. Sakura simply wasn't strong enough to defeat even a fraction of the thugs. Kakashi may have a higher chance, but still, things weren't looking pretty for him. He'd used a lot of his chakra during his fight with Zabuza, and his Sharingan was still activated, thus using even more energy. Not to mention, he was wounded by Zabuza and his giant sword earlier on, and that injury, which consisted in a slash across his torso, was certainly going to restrain him.

Shujinko? Shujinko couldn't even walk or use his arms. Nuff' said.

Naruto didn't seem to analyze the situation. "Come on, Kakashi-sensei! Don't you have a jutsu that could take care of this bunch of idiots?"

Kakashi shook his head. "I've wasted too much chakra. If I attempted a high-level jutsu right now, not only it wouldn't work, but I would probably black out."

"Lets' get em', lads!" the front thug yelled. "Show them what happens whe-"

THUK. His speech was interrupted by an arrow landing in front of him.

"You're forgetting something, you scum! If you want to set one foot in our village, you'll have to go through us first!"

Team 7 turned around to see Inari standing in front of a large crowd of villagers, holding a small crossbow and looking defiantly at the hired-killers. The rest of the villagers were carrying objects like pitches, shovels, fishing spears and clubs. "Naruto nii-chan, I came back! Heroes usually come in at the last minute, right?"

Shujinko blinked. 'Since when does Inari calls Naruto 'nii-chan'? Why is he suddenly so determinate? And how did he manage to bring almost all of the villagers with him?'

"Inari, good to see ya'!" Naruto grinned at him. "Alright, now we can show up these punks! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Twenty-five Narutos came into existence, ready to fight the bandits.

With one problem...

Naruto forgot that he was supporting Shujinko, and dropped him the moment he performed the started crossing his finger. Luckily, Kakashi saw this and carefully caught the boy before his body could hit the ground. "Careful, baka! I can't move!" Shujinko growled at him.

The blond Genin laughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Sorry about that, Shujinko. I kinda forgot you were paralyzed." he said before facing the thugs, who looked like they were soiling their pants. They may have better weapons than the villagers, but that hardly mattered. The hired thugs relied on their brute force rather than their actual skill, so it was their primal instincts what dictated their attacks. As long as they looked terrorizing and had enough strength to swing their weapons, they were good. But there were only forty of them, while the number of the villagers was easily in the hundred and something. The thugs may be somewhat more experienced than the villagers, but the difference in numbers was so overwhelming that it didn't really matter.

The thugs ran away in a stampede, dropping their weapons and trying to reach their ship as fast as they could. Some of the bandits even threw themselves into the river. The villagers started laughing at them and cheering over their victory. Gatou was gone, and so was his domain over their lands. At long last, Nami no Kuni was free, all thanks to their renewed fighting spirit.

"Excuse me, Shujinko." Kakashi said as he handed him over to a bunch of Naruto clones. "There's something that must be done."

Then, the Hatake approached Zabuza, who was surprisingly still alive. He took the weapons out of his body, picked him up and left him next to Haku's corpse. Shujinko supposed it was the swordsman's last will, to die next to the boy he took care of for so many years. The last will of a shinobi... That was a very rare thing to witness, mainly because they died too quickly and in the middle of a battle. Everyone gasped, for it started snowing even though it wasn't winter, and the Ozuma had the unlikely, but somehow, not completely ridiculous suspicion that it had something to do with Haku. Shujinko remained silent as he heard Zabuza's last words.

"Haku... you were always on my side. I suppose the least I can do... is to die next t-to you." Zabuza said, and Shujinko saw tears coming out. Yes, Kiri's Demon was going to die with tears staining his face. "I know it... it cannot be. But if I could, I'd go where y-you are now. You have no idea... how I wish I could... join you there. Ha-Haku..."

And with that, Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of Kirigakure, died.

Even if Zabuza was not, by any rational standard, a good human being, Shujinko couldn't help but feel sad. His last moments of life showed him that he wasn't just an emotionless shinobi who had nothing but his own pursuit in his mind, but a man that had, deep inside of him, buried feelings that flowered at the last minute. Oh, that didn't redeem him, Shujinko thought, but it really showed that even the most heartless of bastards have an ounce of humanity inside of them, even if they didn't show it right away.

"H-He told me... that it was always snowing... where he ca-came from. All the time." Naruto said, sniffling and feeling hurt for the death of someone that was just like him.

"Of course. His spirit was every bit as pure as the snow." the Jounin said, his Sharingan now covered by his headband. 'You never know, Zabuza. Maybe, and just maybe, you'll join him there. You never know...'

Shujinko looked up at the sky, asking himself if Haku was watching him right now, along with Zabuza.

This truly was a C-rank to remember.

* * *

Wow, you have no idea how much I've wanted to get this chapter done with. I know I said I would explain Shujinko's Kekkei Genkai in this chapter, but I've decided to stop it here and finish the whole 'C-rank to remember' saga. How are you guys liking the story so far? I like how it's going, as well as the development of my OC, but I'd love to hear your thoughts. Anyways, I'll start working on the next chapter right away, although I can't really say when I will have it finished.

Ja ne!


	11. Chapter 11

**CHAPTER 11: THE MISSION UPDATE**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

Boring and awkward: Those were the words Shujinko used to describe the past few days. He was currently inside Tazuna's guest room, resting on his futon and waiting for supper.

After the battle of the bridge, Team 7 returned to Tazuna's house. Since Shujinko wasn't able to move, Kakashi had to give him a piggyback ride after gently pulling out all of the senbons that were on his body and sealing the corpses of both Zabuza and Haku inside a scroll.

That's right, a piggyback ride. Kakashi dutifully ignored Shujinko's protests, threats and pleas of mercy and grabbed the boy, arguing that it was the only way to carry him back to the bridge-builder's home in a comfortable way. Shujinko pointed out that he could still walk if one of his teammates held him, but his sensei waved him off and proclaimed that such an idea was ridiculous, much to the Genin's annoyance. His annoyance quickly turned into embarrassment when the villagers in the bridge started celebrating, clapping and cheering for their heroes. So there he was, being carried like a child in front of dozens of villagers that kept thanking him and treating him like some sort of savior, whom which he might have been at some degree. He refused to acknowledge them and decided to hide his cherry red face away from the looks of the crowd. It's not like he disliked the attention, but why did he had to be seen being carried like a kid instead of a full grown Genin?

Shujinko was sure that scarecrow bastard had done it on purpose! Curse him!

Anyways, when Team 7 arrived to Tazuna's house, Shujinko was immediately brought to the guest room for a medical check-up. The senbons Kakashi extracted had left several red marks, and the Jounin recognized them as spots were Shujinko's nervous system had been affected. Although he was, by no means, an expert on the use of senbon needles, his years working as an ANBU Captain had taught him how to deal with them as they were a fairly used weapon among the ANBU recruits. Turns out that Shujinko was going to have to rest for at least a week before he could walk his way to the village, which meant that Kakashi, Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto would have to take care of him while he regained his strength.

The first day had been awkward for the brown-haired boy. His black jacket and brown pants were removed, and now he wore nothing but his boxers, his white t-shirt, a white morning robe and a pair of sandals. His teammates agreed to take turns to feed him: Sasuke would cover breakfast (because it was the shortest meal out of the three), Naruto would cover lunch and Sakura would cover dinner. Meanwhile, his sensei would supervise his physical recovery.

There was nothing much to say about Sasuke feeding Shujinko, other than it was terribly awkward for both youths. The Uchiha heir would pretty much shovel the food down Shujinko's throat as quickly as possible so he could get it over with, not uttering a single word. Sakura was another story. Although it was a little embarrassing for the both of them at the start, Sakura showed good nursing skills, so Shujinko felt at ease in her presence. With Naruto, however, Shujinko was always on edge. The reason for this was because of the first time the Uzumaki attempted to feed him. There was hot tomato soup for lunch, and Naruto accidentally sneezed while holding the bowl, splashing its steaming content all over the Ozuma's face.

Let's just say that Shujinko was forever wary of Naruto's feeding skills ever since.

Speaking of Tazuna, the construction of the bridge was developing at a frightening rate. After the battle of the bridge, every capable villager begged the bridge-builder to let them work. There were so many workers now that Tazuna had to kindly reject some of them. It wasn't about salary problems; the villagers refused to have any payment, claiming that they didn't deserve it. It was simply too hard for Tazuna to organize the crowd of workers that were currently under his watch. In the end, Naruto's clones weren't needed. The blond Genin spent almost all of his time playing with Inari, who was happier than ever. In fact, Tsunami could hardly recognize her own son.

Currently, Shujinko was trying to get some sleep...

* * *

Shujinko found himself inside a dome of ice mirrors. In front of him, a tower of reddish chakra was spiraling around a figure. Shujinko narrowed his eyes to have a better look.

It was Naruto holding Sasuke's body close to him.

 **"You... You killed him. You killed him!"** Naruto roared. His body was severely altered: Crimson eyes, pupils turned into slits, nails turned into claws, bigger fangs, thicker whiskers, spikier hair and a killing intent so strong, so suffocating that it made Shujinko drop down onto one knee. He looked and sounded exactly the same as when they fought Haku.

Only this time, there was no Haku around. Only him.

"Na-Naruto, what's wrong? What happe-?"

 **"YOU KILLED HIM! AND NOW I'M GONNA KILL YOU! YOU HEARD ME!?"**

Shujinko tried to call his name, but his fear was so great that his neck suddenly got obstructed. It felt like having a rock stuck inside his throat. He started choking, and the last thing he saw before everything turned black was the image of Naruto galloping his way towards him, slashing his face with his feral claws.

* * *

Shujinko woke up violently, gasping for air and sweating bullets. His entire body was trembling. Thankfully, he could now use his arms to an extent, so he raised his right hand and shakily took the sweat out of his forehead.

'That was Naruto.' he thought as he tried his best to calm himself.

Over the last few days, Shujinko attempted to comprehend two particular events that took place during his fight with Haku. What happened to him? And what happened to Naruto?

When he looked at his image reflected on one of Haku's ice mirrors, his first assumption was that he experienced some sort of short-term illusion. His pupils were outrageously big, and the rest of his eyes were covered by his golden Irises. He also saw yellow marks that covered his lower eyelids in a horizontal fashion, starting from his lacrimal papilla's. The only options he could think of were:

A) Genjutsu. Haku casted a very subtle illusionary technique that altered his reflection in order to confuse him. While it wasn't completely unthinkable, it was rather doubtful. He saw no handsigns, and the idea of casting a Genjutsu while maintaining another technique was extremely dangerous, especially since Haku had activated his ice mirrors long before he performed the Genjutsu. Unless Haku had extraordinary chakra control and superb mental capacity, what he experienced was not a Genjutsu.

B) A short-lived hallucination produced by the heat of the moment. Shujinko thought that was more likely, if only a little. While he did not lose his mind during the battle, he was definitely on edge. Fighting against Haku had been stressful, to put lightly. He was forced to push his levels of concentration and awareness to their limits in order to survive, and even then he got multiple injuries that left him in his current state. Maybe the amount of stress made him experience an hallucination for a couple of seconds.

There was a third option, but Shujinko hesitated to consider it, mainly because of its unlikeliness.

C) A transformation.

It was stupid. Why would he experience a transformation? He was probably overthinking.

And yet...

As much as Shujinko hated to admit it, option C felt somewhat accurate. He certainly felt different for a brief moment. His eyesight was extremely detailed and precise, to the point where he was able to see Haku's movements. Heck, he was even able to deflect the barrage of senbons going his way, something he couldn't have done before his 'transformation'. But that wasn't all there was to it. It was like... It was like he could somehow sense the living creatures that surrounded him. For a moment, he felt the chakra of Sasuke, Naruto, Haku, Kakashi, Zabuza, Sakura and even Tazuna. It was weird and terribly confusing. Back in Konoha, he once read about a very rare breed of shinobi, who were known as 'Sensor-Types'. Supposedly, they were able to recognize the different chakra signatures around them and pinpoint their exact location. While he was pretty sure he was not a Sensor-Type, it was the only comparison he could come up with.

However, one of them certainly went through a transformation.

It didn't matter how much Shujinko thought about it, he was not capable of finding an answer to the question: What in the world happened to Naruto? His body, his face, his suffocating killing intent and the massive hurricane of chakra... where did all of that come from? His teammate looked more like a demon instead of a human being.

Every time he glanced at Naruto, Shujinko felt uneasy. What if he transformed again? What if the Uzumaki became possessed by that malicious chakra one more time? What would happen to him?

'There's only one person I can think of that might know about this.' Shujinko thought, slowly sliding the door of his room open.

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko whispered.

...

"Kakashi-sensei."

...

"Kakashi-sensei, please wake up."

The Jounin blinked his only visible eye a couple of times before fully opening it. "Mmh? Shujinko, it's the middle of the night. What is it?"

Shujinko bit his lower lip, trying to find the appropriate words he needed to explain himself. "Kakashi-sensei, I... need to talk to you about something." he started to say.

Kakashi let out a long, tired sigh. "If this is about your bathroom issues from the other day, I already told you I will not put it on the record. There's no need for Hokage-sama to know about it, trust me."

The Genin's face flushed tomato-red. "N-No! It's not about that!" he almost shouted.

You see, during his first days in Tazuna's house, Shujinko faced one of the worst problems an injured shinobi could ever hope to face: Going to the bathroom. Not being able to stand up or use his arms heavily played against him since he couldn't walk his way to the bathroom or even hold the toilet paper. The Hatake thought that his student's dilemma was highly amusing, and suggested him to use a 'Big Boy diaper', making Naruto, Tazuna and Inari to almost die of laughter. Shujinko was furious for a second, but then coolly retorted by stating that he would use diapers as long as it was Kakashi the one who would change them. That made the Jounin reconsider his options, and finally decided to give him a special medicament known as 'Hold and Release', or 'H and R', as some of the ANBU recruits liked to call them.

The 'H and R' was a fairly common pair of pills used mostly by ANBU soldiers who were assigned long-term missions that required sabotage and espionage skills. People could say whatever they wanted about them, but even ANBU soldiers were human, so what do they do when they have to answer the call of nature, but can't risk alerting their targets? They swallow an 'H and R', that's what they do. The concept itself was pretty self-explanatory: The H pill held the consumer's needs inside of them by slowing their metabolism for a period of 72 hours and the R pill accelerated the body's metabolism in order to release those needs once the consumer was in a safe location (A.K.A. the toilet).

Long story short, Shujinko took the H pill. Three days later, when his body no longer felt like a plastic bag, Shujinko entered the bathroom and swallowed the R pill.

He ended up staying there for two hours straight. No one had the stomach to enter that bathroom ever since.

The Ozuma shook his head as if to get rid of the memories. "It's about my battle with Haku. There's something I haven't told you, sensei."

Kakashi straightened up, now listening carefully. "And what would that be?"

"Would you mind if we talk outside?"

"I don't see why not." Kakashi responded as he stood up. The Jounin and his student walked down the stairs and silently stepped out of the house. The moon was bright and the sky was clear, not a single cloud wondering around. "Alright, here we are. Now tell me, what's troubling you?"

Shujinko took a deep breath and decided to finish the first subject in one go. "Well, as you already know, Naruto, Sasuke and I fought against Haku back at the bridge. And while we were doing this, I felt something very strange. My eyes started to burn and my chakra was shaky. At some point, something snapped inside my head. I looked at myself in one of Haku's mirrors, and my eyes were completely different. My pupils were as big as a Hyuuga's, and I had some strange yellow marks under my eyes. You might be thinking that it was nothing but a hallucination or that I was under the influence of a Genjutsu, but I honestly think that's not the case. My eyesight suddenly became at least ten times better, and I was able to somehow sense the chakra signatures of all of you. Don't ask me how, sensei, because I have no idea. If that's not weird enough, I even felt a little stronger and faster than before. The only term I can use here is that I... transformed? I felt like I was so much more aware of everything that was going on around me, like I was more in touch with nature than ever. I don't know if anything I said made any sense to you, but if you happen to know anything..." he trailed off, afraid of what Kakashi might be thinking.

The Copy-Ninja payed attention to Shujinko's every word, trying to make sense of the revelation he just heard as he rubbed his chin. Normally, he would assume that Shujinko experienced a Genjutsu, but the symptoms described were misleading. The effects of the Genjutsu itself were strange enough; they were supposed to alter the enemy's senses for the worst, not grant them a boost. Then there was the whole 'chakra signature' business. Unless you were a natural born Sensor-Type, identifying chakra signatures was one of the hardest skills to develop. For a Genin to recognize multiple chakra signatures with no previous training was simply outstanding. Shujinko's Academy record didn't mention anything regarding chakra sensory, and Kakashi was certain Shujinko didn't have the natural ability to sense people's chakra. That was not something you could replicate by using Genjutsu. Not even Yuuhi Kurenai, Konoha's Genjutsu expert, was capable of pulling that out. So what in the name of Kami happened to his student?

"This is indeed unexpected." Kakashi mused. "Did someone else saw this transformation of yours?"

"Sasuke did, and he had his Sharingan activated. Naruto was barely conscious at the moment, so I doubt he saw anything."

"And have you tried tapping into that strange power again?"

Shujinko seemed slightly uncomfortable. "I... Not really. I've spent the last few days wondering if it really happened. I just don't know what to make of it."

Kakashi nodded his head. "Understandable. I advise we keep this conversation between ourselves until we reach the village and report to Hokage-sama. He may or may not know about this."

"Wait, so you really think it happened? How can you be so sure, sensei?"

"I am not sure, Shujinko, not at all. In fact, it could've been nothing for all we know. However, I have to agree that what you are telling me is certainly intriguing, if not mysterious. If what happened to you was real, then it's my responsibility as your sensei to know what it was and where did it came from."

Shujinko said nothing at first. Instead, he fixed his gaze on the shining moon, allowing a long, but surprisingly non-awkward silence to take place. Kakashi merely stared at him, not wanting to disturb the thoughts of the brown-haired boy. At long last, Shujinko raised his voice. "Kakashi-sensei, how do you learn how to kill somebody?"

The Hatake kept staring at the boy. Since the day he became the Jounin in charge of Team 7, he couldn't help but wonder when would he had to give his students the 'killing talk'. It wasn't easy for him to look at death from Shujinko's point of view. He learned how to kill his enemies and how to get over it from a very young age, partly because of his once ruthless and 'follow-the-rules-until-the-very-end' self and because he was raised during the Third Great Shinobi War. At that time, young ninjas had to quickly accept the harsh reality of life, and acknowledge the fact that, if they didn't kill their enemies, they would kill them first. "Learning how to kill someone is simple. There are a lot of ways to do it." he started to say. "Your fear is misplaced. You shouldn't be scared of killing someone; you should be scared of what happens next. Nobody can free himself from their first kill. We shinobi must learn how to control our feelings, because if we didn't, we would go insane. When you see yourself taking away the life of another, you can't help but wonder if he really deserved such a fate. At first, you'll feel guilty and might think of yourself as a monster. Your first kills will be tough to deal with, but eventually you'll come to terms with yourself. And remember, sensei here will be there for you when those hard times come."

"But... what if I'm not ready?" Shujinko whispered as he looked down.

"Shujinko, the truth is you will never be ready. No one, no matter how corrupted or emotionless, is ready for their first kill. It's something you just learn to deal with it. Over time, you start to feel more accustomed to the idea of ending the life of your enemy. I'm not saying you won't feel a thing, but eventually it won't affect you as much as it did the first time."

The Ozuma kept staring at the ground. His sensei did have a point. There was no purpose in worrying about not being ready to kill someone if he would never really be ready. It sounded cruel and bitter, but that was the life of the shinobi, his life. If he never took the time to ponder about the darker aspects of the ninja lifestyle before, then he had no one to blame but himself. In fact, now that Shujinko thought about it, the more ridiculous his past-self seemed to be. 'Ozuma Shujinko, the acclaimed and feared shinobi that has never killed anyone.' It sounded like a humorless joke more than anything. He sighed, and finally decided that troubling himself with things he had no control over was pointless. He still was concerned about killing, but he realized that the sooner he accepted the inevitable, the better off he would be. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei. I really needed to hear that."

Kakashi eye-smiled and patted Shujinko's left shoulder. "Mah, don't mention it. Now, if there's nothing else to discuss..."

"Actually, there is." Shujinko said, and judging by his face, Kakashi could tell the boy meant business here. "Kakashi-sensei, do you know anything unusual about Naruto?"

"Mmh?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"

"Once again, this happened during the battle of the bridge." Shujinko spoke with absolute confidence, for this was one thing he knew it was real. "I was paralyzed by the senbon needles, so I couldn't move. Haku then went to attack Naruto, who was unable to move just like I was. Sasuke took the attack in order to save Naruto, which put him in his death-like state. Of course, neither I nor Naruto knew of this, and we both believed that Sasuke was truly dead. After exhaling what we thought it was his final breath, Naruto... he went berserk. He released some sort of demonic chakra so huge and dense that it actually became visible. His body changed, too. He... Sensei, he looked like a beast. I honestly thought that he might've killed me if I looked at him in the eye." Shujinko shuddered at the memory.

'So he witnessed Naruto under the Kyuubi's influence. This is not good.' Kakashi thought in distress, making sure to keep a direct visual contact in order to not look suspicious.

"I blacked out after that. The moment I woke up, I heard Naruto discussing with Haku. His mask and mirrors were shattered and judging by what they said to one another, they already knew each other from before. I don't know how much I missed, but at least Naruto was back to normal. Haku begged Naruto to kill him because he failed to abide Zabuza's command. When Naruto was close to deliver the final blow, Haku disappeared, stating that he still might be of some use to Zabuza. The mist dissipated, and both I and Naruto saw you killing Haku, who apparently sacrificed himself to save Zabuza. You already know the rest of the story, so I want to ask you one more time. Do you know what happened to Naruto, Kakashi-sensei?"

After a while, Kakashi nodded. "I do."

"Y-You do?"

"Yes, but I can't tell you right now. To be more specific, I'm not allowed to tell you."

Had it not been for the seriousness of the situation, the Jounin would've laughed at the face Shujinko was now sporting. "What? But why?" he asked, starting to feel annoyed by Kakashi's lack of cooperation. Seeing how his sensei was not responding, Shujinko narrowed his eyes and started talking. "If you're aware of Naruto's deal, but you're not allowed to tell me, then there has to be others who know as well. My only guess is that Hokage-sama is also aware, and that he commanded you to not reveal... whatever it was that happened to Naruto. Am I right?" Once again, silence. "Damn it, sensei! I need to know!" Shujinko finally snapped.

"And why is it that you need to know?" Kakashi asked.

"... Because I don't want to be scared of my teammate."

Kakashi's only visible eye widened slightly. This was the first time Shujinko admitted being scared of something, and he couldn't blame the boy. While he was fighting Zabuza, he also felt the Kyuubi's enormous chakra, and the killing intent that came along. He failed to take into consideration that, while he was a hardened Jounin with years of experience, Shujinko was still a fresh Genin who had yet to kill somebody. What was worse, Shujinko was unaware of Naruto's Jinchuriki status, so there was no way he could've guessed what was happening to his friend. That, combined with the recent 'loss' of Sasuke and the staggering ferocity behind Naruto's outburst was more than enough to overwhelm most ninjas, especially one as inexperienced as Shujinko. The Hatake mentally berated himself for not noticing this earlier. "I understand you, Shujinko. And you are right, Hokage-sama is aware of the reason behind what you saw. Trust me when I say that there is a very good reason why am I not allowed to tell you about it. However, one thing that I know for sure is that Naruto would never, ever hurt his comrades on purpose, and that most certainly includes you."

Shujinko gulped, wanting to believe his sensei. He knew that Naruto, despite being dull-witted and attention-seeking, was a good guy who was starting to be his friend. But the image of a beast-like Naruto was still fresh inside his mind, and Shujinko simply knew that, unless he discovered the truth behind Naruto's rampage, he would never be able to truly trust him again.

But, if Kakashi was not willing to enlighten him, then perphaps Naruto himself would. "If you say so, Kakashi-sensei. Thanks for the talk. I'm gonna get some sleep now." and with that said, the Ozuma bowed before entering the house.

Once he was sure Shujinko was upstairs, Kakashi let out a tired sigh. He unsealed a calligraphy brush and an inkwell, and started writing what was going to be a painfully long mission update.

* * *

|The next day. Konohagakure no Sato, Hokage's office|

The Sandaime Hokage was currently dealing with, in his opinion, something that could only be described as a necessary evil: Paperwork. His morning routine consisted in getting, organizing, reading, evaluating, and answering all of the requests, complains, messages, notifications, petitions and reports that arrived. He had to do all of that without going insane or succumbing to the temptation of burning the stacks of papers that were piling up on his desk. How he was still able to retain his sanity was beyond him. As he absently started reading a mission request from the Daimyo's wife (that woman had somehow managed to lose her cat ten times within a week), he was interrupted by someone knocking on the door.

"Come in." Hiruzen said. The door opened, and a small dog he knew all too well came entered the room. "Ah, Pakkun. It is good to see you again."

"Hokage-sama." Pakkun performed the dog version of a bow by closing his eyes and inclining his head slightly to the ground. "I bring a mission update from Kakashi."

The Hokage quickly stood up and took the scroll, thanking the dog for his services. Pakkun bowed one more time and left the office. Unsealing the scroll, the Sarutobi went straight to the section that indicated the team member's life status.

 _Jounin sensei: Hatake Kakashi. Alive._

 _Genin: Uzumaki Naruto. Alive._

 _Genin: Haruno Sakura. Alive._

 _Genin: Ozuma Shujinko. Alive._

 _Genin: Uchiha Sasuke. Alive._

Hiruzen let out a sigh of relief. The previous mission update stated that Team 7 encountered some difficulties along the way. Apparently, the client had an ulterior motive behind and lied about the true nature of the mission. Instead of a normal C-rank, they were now dealing with an A-rank, considering that they had to face Momochi Zabuza, an A-class Missing-Nin from Kirigakure. Luckily, Team 7 survived thanks to an 'outstanding performance of teamwork'. However, Kakashi feared that Zabuza was not truly defeated, and expressed his desire to complete the mission.

In the end, Hiruzen decided to indulge Kakashi, much to the Council's disagreement. When the mission update failed to arrive on time, he started to get second thoughts about his decision. He feared that something could happen to Naruto, his surrogate grandson and the boy he had sworn to protect. The Council, on the other hand, couldn't stand the possibility of losing the heir of the Uchiha clan. If he died, the Sharingan would die as well, and that was something they could not afford. Finally, both the Ozuma and the Haruno clans doubted his decision. They were not nearly as influential as most of the Council members, but he still took their worries into consideration.

Now that he knew that Team 7 was still standing, the Sandaime started to properly read the update from top to bottom. He read about Kakashi's chakra control training, the development of the client's bridge, how Tazuna agreed to pay the price of an A-rank mission once the economy of his village bloomed, etc. It was all well and dandy until he stumbled upon the part where Team 7 confronted Zabuza once more, only this time he was accompanied by his masked ally. At some point, both Shujinko and Sasuke were trapped inside a unique jutsu casted by Haku, which consisted in a dome of ice mirrors. Kakashi was busy dealing with the swordsman, and was in no position to aid his students. That was when Naruto appeared and, attempting to help his teammates, got himself caught inside the jutsu.

The next thing he read made the Hokage's eyes go wide. Sasuke, after awakening his Sharingan, was induced into a death-like state, product of Haku's senbon attack. The loss of his comrade and friend weakened the seal that kept the Kyuubi no Kitsune at bay, thus triggering a transformation of an overly aggressive nature under the demon's influence. Naruto shattered the mirrors and was about to kill Haku until the second vanished, only to appear in front of Kakashi's infamous Raikiri attack. The masked boy sacrificed his life to save Zabuza's. Both Jounins clashed against one another until Gatou entered the scene, followed by a small army of thugs and declaring how he was now going to kill the swordsman instead of paying him for his services. Zabuza, upon hearing this, lost his interest on Kakashi and decided to take out Gatou and as many thugs as he could before dying. After that, the villagers arrived and scared the remaining hired-killers away.

The rest of the update was about the progress of the bridge and how they would return to Konoha in a few more days. However, Kakashi added a special side note, something he rarely ever did. It went like this:

 _Sidenote/s:_

 _The Genin Ozuma Shujinko recently revealed that he witnessed Genin Uzumaki Naruto being possessed and acting under the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra. Days after the battle, he approached his Jounin sensei and asked him questions regarding the event. Genin Ozuma Shujinko is showing clear signs of understandable fear and mistrust towards his teammate, as well as symptoms of nonconformity caused by the lack of information he received. Further negligence of the subject will most likely hinder the development of the Genin Ozuma Shujinko, as well as Team 7's overall performance in future assignments. A private appointment with the Genin Ozuma Shujinko to reveal and discuss the Jinchuriki status of the Genin Uzumaki Naruto is advised._

The Sarutobi rubbed his temples in an attempt to ease the incoming headache. Shujinko witnessing Naruto acting under the Kyuubi's influence was, to say the least, dangerous. He knew the boy was smart, judging by the mission reports handed over by Kakashi. Given enough time, Shujinko would eventually find out about Naruto's secret. Because he was unaware of the law that prohibited anyone to reveal the Uzumaki's status as the Kyuubi Jinchuriki under death sentence or severe punishment, his life could be in serious danger should he tell the wrong person. What was more, one of his shinobi could eliminate him under the pretext that he was 'merely performing his duty', and the Sandaime Hokage was not going to allow an innocent boy to die like that. With that in mind, Hiruzen decided that telling Shujinko about Naruto having the Kyuubi sealed inside of him and warning him of the consequences of revealing the secret was the best course of action. His blond teammate may be against it, but once he understood that it was for Shujinko's safety, Hiruzen was almost certain that he would agree.

The second side note was even more surprising.

 _The Genin Ozuma Shujinko has also given notice to his Jounin sensei of a certain event that took place at some point during his confrontation with the enemy. He claims to have experienced what he described as a 'transformation', describing the following symptoms:_

 _\- Pupils growing four times their normal size_

 _\- Irises covering the rest of his eyes_

 _\- Yellow lineal marks appearing under his eyes_

 _\- Slight physical boost_

 _\- Enhanced sense of perception. Genin Ozuma Shujinko described it as 'being in touch with nature'_

 _\- Enhanced eyesight. Genin Ozuma Shujinko claims his vision was improved by at least a tenfold_

 _\- Sudden chakra signature recognition. The extent and precision of this symptom is unknown_

 _Genin Ozuma Shujinko is not aware if other symptoms were experienced due to the transformation being shortly lived. Haku's senbon attack disrupted the proper flow of his chakra, most likely interrupting his transformation. The Genin Ozuma Shujinko hasn't experienced these symptoms ever since, arguing that he was unsure if the transformation really happened or if he simply suffered from a hallucination. However, his Jounin sensei doubts that the symptoms his student described were the result of a Genjutsu or a hallucination. Genin Ozuma Shujinko also states that his teammate, Genin Uchiha Sasuke, was with him when he started feeling the symptoms, although he has yet to confirm what he supposedly witnessed. Notification of this to the parents of the Genin Ozuma Shujinko is advised._

The Hokage stared at the second side note in silence for a while, and then called for his secretary. "Summon the civilian Ozuma Daichi at once, please."

"Hai, Hokage-sama."

* * *

"You summoned me, Hokage-sama?" Daichi asked after bowing deeply to the old man in front of him. He was on his way to a meeting with a fellow merchant to discuss business when the Hokage's secretary knocked on his door. When she told him that the Hokage himself was looking for him, he nodded in understanding and followed the woman to the Hokage's office. The business meeting could wait.

The Sandaime nodded. "As a matter of fact, I did." he said. "I just received a mission update from Hatake Kakashi, Jounin sensei of Team 7, the shinobi squad of your son."

Daichi's eyes widened. "You did, Hokage-sama? What does it say? How is my son?" he asked rather worriedly. He was a calm, collected individual by nature, but after not receiving news of his son for a while, he became somewhat anxious. His wife and daughter were worried sick, constantly asking him if he had heard anything about Shujinko.

"Do not worry, Daichi-san. Your son has only received minor injuries and will be back at the village in a couple of days." The Hokage said, raising his palm in a calming gesture.

The Ozuma suddenly felt a lot lighter. His son was safe, and almost ready to go home. Nanami was going to be thrilled. "That is good to hear."

"However, in the mission update, Hatake Kakashi added a two-part side note, and in both parts he talked about Shujinko-kun. I believe this concerns the two of us. Please, read the first side note."

Daichi did as he was told. 'So, my son has witnessed Uzumaki-san acting under the influence of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. This is most troubling. I was under the impression that the seal was capable of keeping the demon from interacting with the boy, but now, I am not so sure.' "I do not know what to make of this, Hokage-sama. I bear no ill-will towards Uzumaki-san, but neither do I want to place my son in any unnecessary danger."

"Your concerns are most understandable, Daichi-san." Hiruzen replied. "But even so, I assure you that Naruto-kun will not bring any harm to your son. From what I've heard, Shujinko-kun is starting to befriend him and Naruto-kun values friendship immensely. Besides, if and when Shujinko-kun finds out about his secret, his life may be in danger. You are well aware of the law I established regarding that subject. The best option would be for us to tell him about Naruto-kun's status as the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, and warn him not to tell about this to anyone except Naruto-kun himself and their sensei, Kakashi. It is the only way to ensure his safety, and perhaps the only way to save their friendship."

Shujinko's father nodded in agreement. "I understand, and I also want my son to befriend Uzumaki-san. The boy has been through a lot. However, I also expect Uzumaki-san to have a better control over his emotions. We both know how unstable and violent the Kyuubi no Kitsune can be, and I fear for my son should he ever find himself at the wrong place and time with Uzumaki-san. Please, take this as a father's worry over his children. He, Masumi and Nanami are what I hold most dear in this world."

"Of course. Even with my old age, I still find myself worried about my own son, Sarutobi Asuma, and he's an experienced Jounin in his own right. Your case is no different." the Hokage replied. "Now, there is one more thing you should know about Shujinko-kun. Please, read the other half of the side note."

This time, Daichi's eyes went wide in shock as he read the second half of the side note. His breath suddenly became agitated. 'Shujinko, you…'

"I assume this the result of awakening your clan's bloodline, the one we discussed when you and your wife arrived to the village in hopes of settling down. Am I correct?"

Daichi gave a stiff nod, slowly regaining his composure. "Yes, Hokage-sama."

The Sandaime lit up his favorite tobacco pipe and exhaled. "So, it has finally happened. The Karura Tensei has returned. It seems to me that you and your son will have a long talk once he comes back from Nami no Kuni."

* * *

This was a chapter that simply had to be done, despite being possibly boring. I warn you, next chapter will have more talk than action. Once again, as boring as the next update may look, please understand that those boring moments are necessary for Shujinko's development as a character and for the sake of the story's credibility.

Yes, Shujinko's Kekkei Genkai is called 'Karura Tensei', which roughly translates to 'Karura's Resurrection'. Karura Tensei will be explained next chapter, as well as the origins of the Ozuma clan. Trust me, there will be a LOT of things revealed next chapter.

Reviews are always welcomed. Positive feedback is one of my biggest motivators.

Ja ne!


	12. Chapter 12

**CHAPTER 12: S-RANK SECRETS**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

"We could've never finished the bridge without your help. We'll miss all five of you, ya' know that?" Tazuna said to Team 7 after inaugurating the now 100% finished bridge. All of the villagers gathered around to say their goodbyes to the heroes who allowed the bridge-builder to fulfill his dream. Now that the construction was complete and the village free of Gatou's domain, commerce was sure to flow freely, thus making possible a new era of prosperity for the villagers. Kami knew they deserved it. What was more, there were rumors going around about Tazuna being the next mayor of the village due to his unwavering determination and because of how

much he cared about the people (Shujinko had to stop himself from pointing out that he lied and put the lives of four twelve years-old in grave danger. In the end, he supposed it was for the greater good and no member of the team died).

Shujinko, after a week of recovery, was finally able to regain complete mobility and support of his body. He was feeling a little rusty, but he supposed it was only natural considering that he spent a whole week without training. He would make up for it as soon as he arrived to Konoha. While no one as watching, Shujinko glanced at his blond teammate. After much thought, he decided to give the Uzumaki the benefit of the doubt, and started treating him with a 'friendly indifference', meaning that he avoided interacting with him, but when he had to, he made sure to be polite in order to keep appearances. He was yet to talk to Naruto about him going all crazy and bloodthirsty on Haku, deciding to do so once they reached Konoha.

"Ah, come on. Don't get all sappy. We'll visit you some other time, believe it!" Naruto answered with a foxy grin.

Inari started crying, although he did his best not to show his tears. "You promise?" he asked between sniffles.

As if on cue, Naruto also started tearing up. He couldn't help it. He had grown fond of the little kid. "Yeah, I do. Don't worry, Inari. It's... It's ok to cry. There's n-nothing wrong with that. Go on, c-cry."

"Well, if there's not-thing wrong with... with crying, why don't yo-ou go first?"

Naruto and Inari kept staring at each other for a while before crushing themselves in a brotherly hugh. Shujinko found himself smirking in amusement at the sight, but then frowned. Ever since the battle of the bridge, Naruto had been acting like his usual self, the goofy idiot that was louder than a banshee and had more energy than a five year-old suffering from a sugar overdose. He wanted to go and talk to him like a normal person. He really did. But every time he started to approach him, the images of him going berserk and acting like an irate beast flooded his mind. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to return to Konoha and ask the Sandaime about it. The old man just had to know something.

Goodbyes were said, promises were made and good fortune was wished. With nothing left to do, Team 7 crossed the recently inaugurated bridge until all sight of them was lost. Wiping away a single tear, Tsunami turned to face her father. "You know, you still haven't named the bridge. Do you have any ideas?"

Tazuna chuckled. "Funny that you asked. I was thinking about that myself, and I just came up with a perfect name for the bridge. This name symbolizes the village's newfound courage and spirit. From this day on, this bridge shall be known as... the great Naruto Bridge."

|Meanwhile, with Team 7|

"Oh man, when I get back to the village, I'm gonna eat so much ramen my belly will explode!" Naruto proudly declared as he and his teammates followed their sensei. "Konohamaru will start worshipping me even more when I tell him about this mission!"

"Sasuke-kun, would you like to do something when we get back?" Sakura asked. This mission had certainly been a team-bonding experience, in a weird and life-threatening sort of way. So maybe, and just maybe, Sasuke would consider her invitation and finally agree to go out together. They would go shopping, watch a movie, maybe get something to eat...

"No." the Uchiha replied, not even bothering to look at her.

Sakura looked crestfallen, and Naruto saw the opportunity. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan! When we get back to the village, me and you can go to Ichiraku, or do anything you like!"

"Baka, I wasn't talking to you!" Sakura shouted as she smacked his head.

'Damn it. Oh well, she'll say yes eventually.' the Kyuubi Jinchuriki thought, rubbing his recently abused skull. "Oi, how about you, Shujinko? Do you wanna get some ramen once we get there?"

"Huh? Oh, huuuh, well..." the Ozuma struggled to find an appropriate excuse. But what should he tell him? He didn't want to sound like a douchebag. "... You see, I'm just don't feel like eating ramen as of lately." 'Wow, really convincing.' he mentally slapped himself. Kakashi was leading the group and had his back facing his students, and yet, somehow, Shujinko could feel his sensei's right eye looking at him. "Besides, I kind of promised Nanami-chan we would go to have some sushi once I got back."

"Oh. Alright then, more ramen for me."

* * *

|Time skip to Konoha|

After days of traveling, Team 7 finally reached the Konoha Gates. Shujinko had to admit, he missed his village more than what he thought he would. A mission that was supposed to last for a week or two ended up lasting an entire month. In all of that time, he was unable to communicate with his parents or his sister, who were no doubt missing him terribly, especially Nanami. Besides, he was already feeling the call of Yoi Sakana's sushi. Shujinko was going to eat like a shameless pig today and he knew it.

Izumo and Kotetsu where at the guard post, and greeted their fellow shinobi as they entered. "Alright, team. We have officially fulfilled our mission." Kakashi said.

"You have exceeded my expectations, all four of you. Sakura, I believe this mission was an eye-opener for you. Even if you don't excel at certain ninja aspects, you showed great potential. I am willing to bet that, out of the four, you are the one with the best chakra control. With hard work and proper guidance, you'll become a fine kunoichi."

Sakura scratched her cheek, beaming at his sensei's praise. "Thank you very much, Kakashi-sensei." 'WHO'S THE BEST? I'M THE BEST! SHANAROOO!'

"Sasuke, your battle with Haku proved not only the depth of your strength, but also your commitment. You fought bravely, and even sacrificed yourself for the sake of your comrade. That, in my opinion, is a true testament of your power as a shinobi and person. Not only that, but you were also able to awaken your Sharingan. You honor the name of the Uchiha, as well as the name of your village."

The raven-haired boy crossed his arms and looked away, presumably uninterested. However, Shujinko caught a glimpse of emotion in his eyes, even if it only lasted for a second.

"Shujinko, your sense of leadership and your ability to analyze the situation you're in are excellent. Not only do you fight like a shinobi, but you also think like one. You see things in a way that no one else does. That, alongside your unmistakable prowess as a combatant, are your biggest assets. You'll be stupendous commander one day, I'm sure of it."

The golden-eyed Genin nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Thank you, sensei. It means a lot to me."

"Last but not least. Naruto, even if you acted recklessly at certain points, your growth and determination are impossible to ignore. You left the Academy labeled as the dead-last of the class. Now, you return as both a respectable comrade to your teammates and a hero to the villagers of Nami no Kuni. It was your unwavering resolve what gave Inari his hope back, and thanks to that, the spirit of an entire village was reborn. You should be proud of yourself."

The Uzumaki grinned so wide that his eyes were squinting. "You see? Once I become Hokage, I will change the mind of everyone in this village, the same way I changed Inari's. It's only a matter of time, believe it!"

The Jounin eye-smiled. "I have no doubt about that. Well, considering everything that happened during this mission, this was definitely an A-rank. As such, it is only fair to assume that it shall be labeled as one, even if it was a C-rank at the beginning. A-rank assignments have a much bigger income, which in turns means a much bigger wage to the ones who accomplished it. Now, because Tazuna-san only payed the price of a C-rank and promised to pay the rest in due time, you'll receive payment worthy of a C-rank and the rest will be handed to you monthly."

Shujinko nodded, but felt somewhat disappointed. He would've liked to receive the entire payment all at once.

"A lot of things went south, but we pulled it off in the end. You are free for the rest of the week, so go enjoy yourselves and rest for now. We have a training session next Monday at 11:00 A.M. Please, do try and be punctual like your beloved sensei."

Sneers, glares, scoffs and scowls.

Kakashi happily ignored them. "Anyways, I should get going. Hokage-sama expects a full report and summary of the mission. You are officially dismissed."

As soon as Kakashi finished his sentence, an ANBU appeared next to them. He was wearing the standard ANBU uniform with a hawk mask and a tanto strapped to his back. The four Genins were startled by his sudden entrance, especially Naruto, who still felt wary at the presence of individuals wearing porcelain masks, no doubt because of Haku. The ANBU raised his voice. "Hatake-san, Hokage-sama requests your and Ozuma-san's immediate presence."

"What? Why does Hokage-sama wants to see me?" Shujinko asked, visibly confused. He was planning on visiting the leader of the village himself, but he was not expecting the Sandaime to summon him. His three other teammates were also looking at him. What was going on?

"I am not allowed to reveal any more information. You and Hatake-san are to come with me now." The ANBU replied, his tone emotionless.

"But... But I just got back. Can't I at least see my parents first? They haven't seen me in over a month."

The ANBU shook his head. "My orders are to bring you and Hatake-san over to Hokage-sama's office. I ask you to not make things harder."

Kakashi placed his hand on Shujinko's shoulder. "It's alright, Shujinko. I know you want to see your family, but Hokage-sama is calling for us and we must go." he then turned around to face Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke. "Correction: You three are dismissed. I and Shujinko will go visit Hokage-sama. Ja ne!" he said before grabbing the back of Shujinko's jacket with one hand and performing a hand sign with the other. After a poof of smoke, Shujinko, Kakashi and the ANBU disappeared, leaving three very confused Genins behind.

"Why the heck does Shujinko has to talk with Hokage-jii-chan?"

"Why should I know, dobe?"

"Wasn't talking to you, teme!"

"Stop annoying Sasuke-kun, Naruto-baka!"

* * *

Had it not been for his sensei's hand grabbing him, Shujinko would've fall to the ground flat on his lower back. Using the Shunshin no Jutsu to go from one place to another was definitely convenient and time-saving, but curse him if it wasn't awkward and disorienting as hell. "How can you even travel like this?" Shujinko asked, feeling a little sick.

The Hatake shrugged. "I got used to it. You will also get used to it once you learn it and use it a couple of times. Now come, Hokage-sama is waiting for us."

Jounin and Genin entered the building where the Hokage was expecting them. Hiruzen's office was located in the fourth floor of the building. The first floor was where most of the employees worked, handling the complains of the villagers and a plethora of other subjects, like taxes, economy development, health care, law enforcement, etc. The second floor was where the mission requests were analyzed and approved/disapproved by several others employees and a handful of Chunins who were looking for some extra ryos during their free time. Finally, the third floor was where the Council meetings were being held. Shujinko took notice of something. "Kakashi-sensei, how come you're always late to our missions and training sessions when you can use the Shunshin no Jutsu?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Because the Shunshin no Jutsu always makes me feel dizzy." answered the Jounin, who was far too busy reading his orange book full of unspeakable obscenities to spare him a glance.

Shujinko sweat dropped. "But you said at the entrance that you already got used to it."

"Mah, you must be hearing things. I would never lie to any of my adorable students."

"You just did, you lazy pervert." the brown-haired boy quietly mumbled so his sensei wouldn't hear him.

"I'm sorry? Did you saiy something, Shujinko?"

"Me? Nothing."

"Huh, that's strange. I could've sworn you just said something about someone being a lazy pervert."

The Ozuma let out an awkward chuckle. "You must be hearing things as well. I would never disrespect my cool and totally awesome sensei."

Kakashi eye-smiled. "My, my, I never knew you had such a high opinion of me. I'm flattered. Alright, here we are." he said before entering the room without any previous warning, a rather rude thing to do if you asked Shujinko. Anyways, the next thing that happened caused said Genin to blink in confusion. Apparently, the Sandaime Hokage didn't hear them coming in, and seemed to be pleasantly reading a small book with an orange cover.

Ever since he was a little boy, Shujinko have always had good aim. Part of this was because of his constant training and his desire to improve, but it was also because he had good eyesight. As a matter of fact, he always scored 20 out of 20 at the medical visual test back in his Academy days. Taking this into consideration, his eyes rarely misinterpreted what they saw, and what Shujinko saw left him confused. When the old man realized that Shujinko and Kakashi were at his office, he opened his desk drawer, threw the orange book inside and closed the drawer with a speed that could rival the Yondaime's Hiraishin. Yes, it all happened very fast, but Shujinko saw it all.

Why that book looked so much like Kakashi's Icha Icha? Why was the Hokage blushing? And why was Kakashi looking so amused?

Why?

'Could it be that Hokage-sama was reading... No, that would be outrageous. He must have been reading something like poetry or philosophy. Hokage-sama is a wise, respectful and kind old man. He would never belittle himself by reading the sort of filth that Kakashi-sensei is fond of.' Shujinko concluded. How could he even think of that? The Sandaime Hokage reading Icha Icha? Hilarious.

"Good morning, Hokage-sama." Kakashi said, still looking smug for some reason.

The Hokage coughed a little before addressing them. "Good morning to you too, Kakashi. But in the future, please knock on the door before entering."

"Will do."

"I see you brought Shujinko-kun here. Good."

Shujinko bowed deeply in response. "Good morning, Hokage-sama. How are you doing today?"

The Sarutobi chuckled. "As well as an old man can be." 'Although I would feel a lot better if people wouldn't interrupt me during my private literature recess.' he mentally added. "Kakashi here has given me a report of the mission you and your team just came back from. I must say, there are not a lot of Genins out there that have the level of proactivity and maturity that you displayed. I am most pleased with your progress as a Konoha shinobi."

The Ozuma beamed in pride. Hearing such things from the man that was known as a 'God among ninjas' made it hard for Shujinko to keep his ego from rising.

"However, I did not summon you just to give you compliments." Hiruzen continued, and Shujinko knew things were about to get serious. "What we are about to discuss is an S-rank secret, and you will not tell of this to anyone unless I or your sensei say otherwise."

Well, crap. S-rank secrets did sound pretty serious.

"You saw something you were not supposed to see. Something happened to Naruto-kun while you were fighting this Haku boy. Do you recall that event?"

Shujinko gulped. "I-I do." he stuttered.

The Sandaime nodded. "Very well. Now let me ask you this: What do you know about the Kyuubi no Kitsune?"

'Ok, this is getting way too strange. What does the Kyuubi no Kitsune has to do with any of this?' "The Kyuubi no Kitsune was a powerful beast that attacked this village twelve years ago. Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage at that time, fought the Kyuubi and sacrificed his life in order to protect the village. He defeated the beast and saved everyone. But where's the secret? What does Naruto has to do with the Kyuubi?"

"Patience, young one. Everything you said is correct. Or at least, almost everything."

Shujinko frowned. What was the Hokage implying? There was not much information regarding the Kyuubi, other than it was a huge beast, said to be the embodiment of destruction and suffering. Everyone knew the story of the brave and selfless Yondaime Hokage, who sacrificed his life for the village. If he was missing something, he had no idea what it was. "Almost everything?" Shujinko repeated.

"You see, what most people ignore is that Bijuus such as the Kyuubi are impossible to kill. A Bijuu, in escense, is a masive amount of living chakra. Now, there are plenty of things you can do to your chakra: You can mold it, use it in battle, walk on almost any surface, but what you can't do... is to kill chakra. It would be like trying to break water in its liquid state, it simply cannot be done. Therefore, Namikaze Minato did not kill the Kyuubi, because the Kyuubi cannot be killed."

"But... Then how did Yondaime-sama ki... defeated the Kyuubi?"

The Hokage leaned back. "Tell me, Shujinko-kun. If you had an object that you can't destroy, but that you have to get rid of, what would you do?"

The Ozuma started thinking. 'How do I get rid of something I can't destroy? I could... send it away, I guess. Maybe throw it away into a place where that object could never escape, but... No, that's not always possible, especially if we're talking about the Kyuubi. Aaargh, thinking about this is too troublesome. How could Yondaime-sama figure out a way to defeat something as powerful and aggressive as the Kyuubi? If he couldn't kill that beast, maybe he... transported it... to another

dimension... But how can you do that? A jutsu that can transport something into another dimension... is it truly possible? If it does exist, then it's definitely something incredibly complicated. I mean, it's the Kyuubi, it couldn't have been as simple as sealing a kunai inside of a sealing scroll. A kunai... sealed inside of a sealing scroll... Seal... Now you see it... POOF... Now you don't...' "I would seal it?" he asked more than answered.

"You're a sharp one, aren't you?" the Sarutobi chuckled. "Indeed, Namikaze Minato didn't kill the Kyuubi. Instead, he sealed it away. You may or may not know this, but the Yondaime was an absolute genius when it came to Fuuinjutsu, the sealing arts. Using a tremendously dangerous and complicated technique, the Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi away at the cost of his own life."

"Wait, when you seal something, you need another something to seal that something inside." Shujinko pointed out. "If I need to seal a weapon, I use a scroll. What could've Yondaime-sama used as a container for the Kyuubi? You're not telling me we have the Kyuubi sealed inside a scroll, are you?"

"If it only had been as easy as that." Hiruzen sighed. "The Kyuubi was sealed... inside a newborn infant."

"A-A newborn infant?"

"Yes. You might be wondering: Why didn't they tell us this back at the Academy? For a very simple reason. If the Kyuubi was not killed, we would ask ourselves: Then what was it that the Yondaime Hokage did to stop him? He sealed it. Sealed it inside of what? A newborn infant. And who would that newborn infant be, Shujinko?"

Shujinko did his best to remain calm. The story of the infamous Yondaime Hokage was a lie. Well, it wasn't a lie per se, but it wasn't what people thought it was, either. And what did Naruto have to do with any of this? He saw Naruto being possessed and acting like a wild beast, so why was the Hokage telling him all of this?

Naruto...

A newborn infant...

The Kyuubi sealed...

Naruto acting like a beast...

Kyuubi...

Naruto...

Sealed inside...

"No... No way... Naruto was..."

"Naruto-kun was the newborn infant used as the container of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. He has the Bijuu inside of him."

Shujinko stared at the floor, unable to digest the bomb. Naruto was the Kyuubi's container? That happy-go-lucky knucklehead had the demon fox inside of him ever since he was born? His mouth twitched up and down, trying his best to come up with an answer, but failing miserably at it. He could no longer hear the Sandaime or his sensei's words. He zoned out, his vision becoming a blurry image.

Naruto... his teammate... was the vessel of the most destructive force known to man.

But what could he make of it? Did that change his perspective of Naruto?

Kakashi watched as his student took in the news. He was, without a doubt, the youngest person to ever know that little secret from the Disaster of Konoha. His eyes were practically screaming 'shock', and Kakashi had to shake him a bit to get him out of his blank state. "Shujinko, snap out of it."

The Genin gasped and came back to reality. "If... If Naruto has the Kyuubi inside of him... Then what I saw in the bridge..."

"What you saw was Naruto-kun under the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra. The seal that keeps the demon at bay, as strong as it is, can leak out a portion of the Bijuu's chakra when Naruto-kun experiments strong emotions. When Naruto-kun believed Sasuke to be dead, his anger clouded his judgement and allowed to be partially controlled by the Kyuubi." the old man explained. He felt relief, and fear. Relief because Shujinko now understood what happened to his friend. Fear, because he had no idea how he was going to react. The only sensations he could feel pouring out of the boy was shock, and a little bit of realization.

After what felt like an eternity for the Ozuma, he finally regained his voice. "... It does explain some things."

"Things like..." the Hokage urged him to continue.

"... Like how much chakra he has. His favorite jutsu is the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, a technique which I know for a fact that requires a lot of chakra. A truly skilled Genin should be able to do one shadow clone, two at the most. Back at the bell test, Naruto was able to perform around sixty of them, and he didn't look tired at all. It also explains why his chakra control is, or at least was, so poor. He was never able to do the basic chakra control exercises back at the Academy, and the regular clones were impossible for him to do. Because of all of the chakra he has, he couldn't find the balance needed. With the shadow clones, he is able to use a lot more chakra, so it's like a regulator." Shujinko said, making sure to think of every oddity that Naruto had to offer. "Also, the villagers do seem to have a great distaste for him. I noticed that, while we were out doing D-ranks, almost everyone passing by us would glare at him and talk behind his back. At first, I thought that they didn't like him because of all the pranks he pulled out on them, but then I realized that their hate towards him was excessive. No one could dislike him that much just because of his pranks. There had to be something else, and now I understand."

The Sandaime looked at the silver-haired Jounin. "You were not bluffing when you said he had great observation skills, Kakashi."

"But there's something I don't understand. If the villagers were told that the Kyuubi 'died', why do they hate Naruto? How can they relate the Kyuubi with him?"

"The reason is as simple as it is pitiful. It's because Naruto-kun was born in October tenth, moments before the Kyuubi attacked. After the battle, the villagers found out about Naruto-kun, and believed him to be the reincarnation of the Kyuubi himself. They saw him as the Kyuubi using a human form, and treated him as such ever since. I established a law that forbade anyone from reveling Naruto-kun the truth about him. He himself was not aware of this until just recently. Do you remember Mizuki, your Chunin-sensei back at the Academy?"

Shujinko nodded. Mizuki was one of his teachers, alongside Iruka, during his last year as a student. Shujinko supposed the man was an ok guy. He didn't really know him that well.

"After the graduation test, which Naruto-kun failed for the third time, Mizuki manipulated Naruto-kun into stealing a very special scroll that contains several Kinjutsus, techniques that are considered to be too dangerous for the user. This scroll is known as the Forbidden Scroll, and Mizuki promised Naruto-kun he would allow him to graduate if he managed to learn one technique from it."

"I take it the technique he went for was the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Naruto never performed that jutsu back in the Academy, and knowing him, he wouldn't have hesitated to show off that technique. And considering the amount of chakra needed to perfom one simple shadow clone, I can understand why the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu is forbidden." Shujinko deduced.

"Right you are, Shujinko-kun. The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu is, indeed, a Kinjutsu."

Shujinko frowned. Something was missing here. "But if that scroll is so important, then how come nobody stopped Naruto from stealing it? Who was the one guarding the scroll, and how did Naruto slipped past him? Stealth is certainly not his forte."

Hiruzen's eye twitched. He, the Hokage, the strongest shinobi of the village and its protector, was easily outmaneuvered and incapacitated by Naruto's Oiroke no Jutsu, a technique he was seriously considering adding it to the list of Konoha's S-rank Ninjutsus. "That... is of no importance to this conversation. As I was saying, once Mizuki was certain Naruto-kun would do the dirty work, he waited for him in the forest, and ambushed him. Iruka managed to stall him, but not before Mizuki revealed Naruto-kun his status as the Kyuubi's container. Fortunately, Naruto-kun was able to overpower Mizuki, who was taken into custody. Iruka was so surprised by Naruto-kun's performance, and granted him the rank of Genin. A week later, Team 7 was formed, and you and Naruto-kun became team members."

The Genin threw his head back and took a deep breath. So that was the story behind Naruto's outburst. "Is that the reason why Naruto is such a prankster, Hokage-sama? He does all of those pranks to get back at the villagers for mistreating him?"

"That is certainly one of the reasons, but not the main one. You see, ever since Naruto-kun was a boy, he received nothing but hatred from the villagers. It hurt him terribly, but he endured the pain. However, something even worse than hatred came after: Loneliness. The villagers refused to acknowledge him, and pretended he didn't exist. The negligence was too much for Naruto-kun to withstand. He discovered that, by doing all sorts of mischievous deeds, he received attention from the villagers. Maybe not well-natured attention, but attention at the end of the day. That is the ultimate reason behind his constant pranks. He wants his existence to be recognized, he wants people to acknowledge the fact that he's alive, even if it means getting their attention by resorting to pranks."

In that instant, the Ozuma recalled certain things said by Naruto.

 _"... I'm not some weapon for my village, and I know exactly what you've been through! The sadness, the loneliness, the feeling that no one cares about you, I know that just as well as you do!"_

 _"... my dream for the future is to be the greatest Hokage! That way the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like somebody important, believe it!"_

 _"... Someday I'm gonna become Hokage and you'll have no choice but to look up to me!"_

 _"... Once I become Hokage, I will change the mind of everyone in this village, the same way I changed Inari's. It's only a matter of time, believe it!"_

'It all makes sense now.'

Indeed, it did. At first, he considered Naruto to be obnoxious by nature. His pranks, his annoyingly loud voice, his motivation to become Hokage, all of that had a purpose. He was attention-seeking, because he never had any when he was growing up. Now that he thought about it, Naruto was considered a ramen addict, and with good reason. When he and Nanami shared a meal with Naruto at the Ichiraku ramen stand, he noticed how both Ayame and Teuchi, the local owners, were kind and treated the Uzumaki boy with gentleness. In fact, he recalled Naruto referring to them as Ayame-nee-chan and Teuchi-oji-chan, sister and old man respectively. They were affectional suffixes, Shujinko noticed. He was an orphan who had no one to look after him. Was that the reason he worshiped ramen so much? Not just because of its taste, but because it basically represented the kindness and attention that both Teuchi and Ayame gave to him? It wasn't unthinkable.

What about his orange jumpsuit? Shujinko was never able to comprehend why Naruto loved his jumpsuit so much. It was as bad-looking as it was impractical for shinobi duties. When you lived in a village surrounded by forests, the color orange stood out like a sore thumb. An enemy could recognize you within miles unless you were a master at hiding yourself, and Naruto was never really good at hiding not only because his unmistakable eye-sore of a jumpsuit, but because of his brash and challenging behavior. Long story short, his jumpsuit was extravagant. But maybe that was what Naruto wanted, to be seen more easily. It was either that, or he had a horrifyingly bad sense of fashion.

And his dream of becoming Hokage... he could understand it now. He wanted to become the Hokage in order to obtain the village's respect and approval. After all, it was simply impossible to ignore the Hokage. Oddly enough, Shujinko himself wondered if he should become Hokage at times. In all honestly, he didn't found the idea to be appealing. He had great respect for the position, but he simply wasn't interested. He could manage being the leader of a team, but being the leader of a village was a completely different subject. Of course, he would protect his home if it was being threatened, because that was his duty. If Naruto ever became the Hokage, he had to be willing to sacrifice his life if that meant ensuring the village's safety, exactly like the Yondaime Hokage did.

"This... is a lot to take." Shujinko stated simply. Kakashi was standing beside him, not uttering a word. This was a conversation between his student and the Hokage. He would talk to him later.

"I realize this must be difficult for you to understand." the Sarutobi started to say. That was an understatement, and he was well aware of that. The original plan was to wait until the members of Naruto's generation were of age before revealing the Kyuubi's secret. However, things just didn't work out, and he could only pray to Kami for Shujinko to be open-minded and reasonable. "I will repeat this one more time: Do NOT discuss this with anyone else. You were not meant to know about this, not at your current age. I am telling you this because it could not be helped. Do I make myself clear?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama."

"Good. One more thing before you leave: Naruto-kun has suffered enough already. Do not avoid him." he warned. Shujinko gave a small nod in response. "Now, you are dismissed. You may go see your family, Shujinko-kun."

With that said, the brown-haired boy bowed and left the room.

The Hokage turned to face the Copy-Ninja. "How do you think this will affect him, Kakashi?"

"This was something that had to be done, Hokage-sama." Kakashi replied. "Shujinko would've find out eventually. It was better for him to understand Naruto's condition now and from us rather than later and from others. Ever since I became the Jounin sensei of Team 7, I've realized that all my students have their unique perspective of life. Shujinko, despite his age, is quite a logical thinker... I have faith in him."

* * *

One of the golden rules that were taught in every shinobi village went like this: "A shinobi must expect the unexpected."

The rule was fairly simple and easy to understand. Basically, a shinobi must always be ready for anything. He must be able to predict even the most unlikely scenarios and know how to act accordingly. He must be alert at all times and never allow himself to be caught by surprise, for it may prove to be fatal both for the mission and the shinobi performing the mission.

For the longest of times, Shujinko believed that ninja rules should only be applied when he was executing a mission, not every single day of his life. After all, he was more than just a shinobi, more than just an emotionless tool used by his village. He loved his family, he had likes, dislikes, dreams and hopes for the future. If having all of that meant he was not a shinobi, then he had no interest on being one. As far as he was concerned, he had two lifes: His shinobi life and his 'civilian' life, for lack of a better term. While his shinobi life required most of his time, Shujinko made sure to save some for his 'civilian' life. When he was not studying or training, one could find Shujinko eating sushi at his favorite food stand, taking a walk, talking to his friends, playing Shogi, and a bunch of other stuff.

Then he realized that he was not in the Academy anymore.

This was real life.

Naruto, his teammate, had the Kyuubi sealed inside of him. Well, he certainly wasn't expecting that.

He didn't know how to react, either. He wasn't angry at him. He didn't feel happy for him. He just... was.

As he walked down the street, he couldn't help but imagine how Naruto saw the world. He imagined pedestrians whispering to one another as he passed by, the disgusted faces of all the merchants from the stores, mothers keeping their sons and daughters away from him, grown men spitting at his feet and shoving him...

Naruto had to endure that on a daily basis. Ever since he was born.

...

How?

How was he not insane by now? How could people treat a clueless child like that? How was he supposed to feel proud of his village now?

He gritted his teeth in anger. He truly felt ashamed for having to protect such narrow-minded civilians. Not just because of their cruelty, but also because of their limitless stupidity. They believed Naruto was the Kyuubi in a human body? If that was the case, then why in the name of Kami would they mistreat him? If he really was the demonic fox, then he would've kill the people who wronged him, or maybe kill every civilian he laid his eyes on, or something a lot more destructive than just a few pranks. Instead, the only thing he ever did was struggle to survive.

He would understand if people felt nervous around him. It would be superstitious and stupid, but at least he would understand. But to reach the point of insulting, disrespecting and humiliating him, especially ever since he was a kid, made him think two things: That Naruto was innocent in all of this and that the villagers were all Kami-level idiots (some of them being exceptions).

It almost made him regret becoming a ninja.

He was so busy dealing with his inner thoughts that he almost missed his house. Shujinko let out a tired sigh, unzipped his backpack, grabbed his house keys and opened the door. It felt good to be back, even if the taste was bittersweet. Once he entered his residence, he took off his boots and left them at the entrance, not wanting to besmirch the floor. He already ate breakfast, so there was no need to cook anything, even though a home-cooked breakfast was tons of times better than ration bars. It was still early in the morning, so his father was probably working on his trading business with his associates and Nanami was attending the Academy. His mother was probably relaxing in one of the village's hot springs at this time of the day, considering that it was one of her favorite activities.

With nothing else to do, he went to the bathroom upstairs and treated himself with a long, hot shower. The road from Nami no Kuni to Konohagakure no Sato was long and tiring, and had no inns or taverns were travelers could rest in. Team 7 had no other choice but to camp wherever they could and take turns to guard the camping area. They had to use the cold water of whatever river they could find in order to clean themselves. Not only that, but the only spare clothes they had with them were their underwear (with the exception of Naruto. That idiot forgot to bring extra pairs of underwear, and spent the entire mission using only one. Sakura went green and gagged when she found out), so Shujinko was itching for a bath and a new set of clothes.

Shujinko took off his dirty clothes and turned on the hot water, shivering in pleasure when his body was splashed by the warm liquid. It wasn't long before the bathroom was filled with steam, emulating the sensation of bathing in one of Konoha's many hot springs locals. The Genin did not hesitate to overuse the soap and shampoo, considering that he had none of them during the trip back from Nami no Kuni. After half an hour of blissful bathing, Shujinko finally turned the water off and stepped outside the shower, covering his dripping existence with a white towel. He opened the door and went straight to his room, allowing all of the accumulated steam to be free.

His room was just a tidy as it was the day he left the village. Shujinko's room was a little small, but well decorated, just like the rest of the residence. It consisted in a medium-sized bed with pale green bed sheets, a wardrobe, a bookshelf were Shujinko stored all of his books and notebooks he read and used throughout his five years in the Academy so Nanami could take advantage of them as future study material, a wooden trunk were he stored all of his ninja tools (the trunk was secured with a lock that Shujinko placed so his little sister wouldn't borrow his kunais without permission), a desk with a lamp on it, a small window that had a great view of the Hokage Monument and a bedside table next to his bed. He had a calendar on the wall which Shujinko used to write down all the important dates, like festivals and team training sessions. There was also a poster next to the wardrobe. It was nothing but a rectangular white sheet that had the kanji for 'shinobi' printed on with red ink. It was simple, but he liked it.

His favorite decoration, however, were all of the pictures that surrounded the window wall next to his desk. Masumi had the habit of photographing every event she deemed important, like every single one of Shujinko's birthdays, his first day of class at the Academy, the graduation day, and Nanami's birthdays as well, just to name a few. Out of all the pictures, Shujinko had two favorites. The first one was a picture that was taken the very next day after the bell test. It showed the four Genins that composed Team 7 and his sensei. Naruto was at the far right of the picture, both glaring and growling at Sasuke, who was in the far left. Sasuke was looking away from the picture, his face showing unmistakable signs of annoyance. Sakura was between Sasuke and Shujinko, sticking out her tongue. Shujinko was between Sakura and Naruto, sporting an easygoing smile. Kakashi was standing behind them, eye-smiling and ruffling the hair of both the Uchiha and the Uzumaki.

The second one was like a treasure for the Ozuma. It showed Shujinko grinning like an idiot and Sasuke glaring furiously at the ground with his arms crossed. The picture was taken three years ago, so both males were only nine at that time. During one of their many sparring matches, Shujinko made a bet with the raven-haired boy. If he won, then Sasuke would have to take a picture with him. Sasuke thought the bet was stupid, but thanks to his overconfidence and Shujinko's constant taunts, he accepted the challenge. Unfortunately for him, he ended up losing the spar. He was beyond furious, but because the honor of the Uchiha name was on the line, he had no other choice but to keep his word. Shujinko promised he would never show the picture to anyone, and he never did. Still, every time he looked at the photography, he couldn't help but chuckle at the memory.

Since the Ozuma family only consisted of four members, there was no need for them to live in a compound like the Hyuugas. Besides, Shujinko was well aware that his family was not, by any means, wealthy. Daichi's trading business allowed him to cover the monthly expenses of his family, and Masumi worked part-time as a secretary. The combination of her salary and her husband's trade earnings allowed them to maintain a humble, but satisfying lifestyle. Fortunately, the village invested a lot of money on shinobi-related subjects, and education was one of them. The Academy was an institution funded by the village's government, so there was no need to pay for the children's education. That was one of the reasons why a lot of orphans joined the Academy, because it was free of charge.

Shaking his head, Shujinko took off the towel and dressed himself with a plain blue t-shirt and a pair of beige shorts. Now that he was clean and had fresh new clothes on, the golden-eyed boy lied down on his bed and felt himself relaxing. Before he knew it, he was sleeping like a baby.

* * *

"ONI-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"

Shujinko violently woke up from his slumber, and barely had time to blink before he was tackled by his seven year-old sister, Ozuma Nanami.

"Nanami! What's going on!?" Shujinko heard his mother say.

"KAA-CHAN, ONI-CHAN IS HOME!"

"What!?"

"Hey there, chibi-chan." the Genin greeted his sister, who was fiercely holding on to his neck. "Yeah, I'm home. Did you miss me?"

"Oni-chan, why did you took so long to get back!?"

"Huuuhmm... I had shinobi stuff to do?"

"Oni-chan!" Nanami protested, clearly not satisfied by the answer.

Before Shujinko could explain himself, his mother entered his room. "Shujinko? Oh Shujinko, I was so worried about you!" Masumi said, hugging her son so tightly that she almost snapped his neck. "When did you get back? Why didn't we heard from you for so long? You have a lot of explaining to do, young man!"

"Kaa-san... chibi-chan... can't breathe."

Realizing that she was close to killing her own son, Masumi relented and calmed down. Nanami, however, either didn't listen or didn't care, because she kept hugging her brother. "Oni-chan... I missed you." Nanami sniffled, her tears staining Shujinko's t-shirt.

Shujinko wiped away his sister's tears. "And I missed you more. Sorry for taking so long, but our mission got complicated and we had no other choice but to stay there a little longer." 'Understatement of the year.' "Kaa-san, where's tou-san?"

"Daichi is meeting a few possible investors for one of his new business projects. The meeting started early in the morning, so he should be back any minute now." Masumi replied. "Which reminds me, it's almost time for lunch. You must be tired, so get some sleep while I start cooking a decent home-made meal. Poor thing, you must be starving!"

"Kaa-san, you don't have to do this. I still have some money left from all the previous D-ranks, and I still have to collect my payment from-"

"Nonsense!" Masumi snapped, making her son squirm a little. "You just got back from a month-long mission, and I won't allow my baby boy to spend his well-earned money on food when he has his own caring mother to cook him lunch. Now, you get some sleep, and I will bring you something to eat. And don't even think of going down to help me, you have to rest. Do I make myself clear?"

The Genin gulped and nodded. Her mother, as kind and gentle as he was, could get unbelievably scary when she wanted to. "Troublesome woman." he muttered under his breath, recalling how his friend Shikamaru used that term to refer to his own mother.

"What was that!?" Masumi asked, leaking out a little bit of what she dubbed 'motherly killing intent'.

"Nothing, Ma'am!" Shujinko whimpered. He was pretty sure that her mother could've made Zabuza eat his vegetables with that tone of hers.

Masumi gave her son a sweet smile. "That's what I thought. Wait here, baby boy. Mommy will be here soon enough with yummy food."

Shujinko sighed as his mother left the room. "Kaa-san can get pretty scary at times, huh?" he asked Nanami, who nodded eagerly. She was no stranger to Masumi's 'motherly killing intent', being the hyperactive and tomboyish little girl that she was. "Sorry chibi-chan, but I'm really tired. Kaa-san is right, I need some sleep. Do you think we could talk later?"

Nanami shook her head vigorously. "No. I want to stay here with you."

"But what about classes? Don't you have to come back to the Academy?"

"Iru-chan is sick. He said we could go home early today."

Shujinko raised an eyebrow at that. "Iru-chan? Who is he?"

Nanami looked confused for a minute, but then grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. Iruka-sensei."

"I see." Shujinko chuckled. "Alright, you can stay here, but I'm still gonna sleep. Aren't you going to get bored?"

"... Can I sleep with you, oni-chan?"

The Ozuma hesitated. While it didn't really mattered to him, his father didn't really like the idea of his two children sharing a bed, stating that it may cause 'future inconvenient habits'. He supposed he could make an exception this time. "Sure. You can tag along if you want."

As Shujinko accommodated himself, Nanami quickly scooted next to her brother and placed her head over his chest. Shujinko placed an arm around her. Both Ozumas fell asleep before they knew it.

* * *

(8 hours later)

"You called for me, tou-san?" Shujinko asked as he entered his father's office. The father-and-son reunion had been somewhat awkward for Shujinko. Daichi was obviously pleased to see his son, but the golden-eyed boy noticed his father's strange behavior, and quite frankly, he had no idea what to make of it. People often compared Daichi with the Hyuuga members in terms of showing emotions. Shujinko knew his old man was not as strict as the Hyuugas, but did agree that he could show more emotions every now and then. So, for him to openly show hesitation was very uncharacteristic of him.

"I did." Daichi replied, gesturing his son to come and sit in front of him. Shujinko obliged and did as motioned. Daichi then poured tea into two small cups. "Hokage-sama informed me about your performance during the mission to Nami no Kuni." he stated after taking a small sip of his tea.

"And what did Hokage-sama tell you?" Shujinko asked.

"He was satisfied. Your action and prowess suggest that you have qualities of a leader."

"I still have a lot to learn, tou-san." Shujinko replied, wondering where his father was going with this. "If I eventually become a leader to my teammates, it won't be anywhere soon."

Daichi nodded. "Perhaps. Only time can tell whether you are suited for the position of team leader."

Shujinko narrowed his eyes. "What's going on here, tou-san? I know you didn't call me just to discuss whether I'm suited for the position of team leader or not."

"... As a matter of fact, I didn't. Hokage-sama also informed me of a particular occurrence." Daichi said as he handed his son a copy of a scroll. "I believe you do recognize this."

The brown-haired boy took the scroll and started reading it out loud:

"The Genin Ozuma Shujinko has also given notice to his Jounin sensei of a certain event that took place at some point during his confrontation with the enemy. He claims to have experienced what he described as a 'transformation', describing the following symptoms:

\- Pupils growing four times their normal size

\- Irises covering the rest of his eyes

\- Yellow lineal marks appearing under his eyes

\- Slight physical boost

\- Enhanced sense of perception. Genin Ozuma Shujinko described it as 'being in touch with nature'

\- Enhanced eyesight. Genin Ozuma Shujinko claims his vision was improved by at least a tenfold

\- Sudden chakra signature recognition. The extent and precision of this symptom is unknown.

Genin Ozuma Shujinko is not aware if other symptoms were experienced due to the transformation being shortly lived. Haku's senbon attack disrupted the proper flow of his chakra, most likely interrupting his transformation. The Genin Ozuma Shujinko hasn't experienced these symptoms ever since, arguing that he was unsure if the transformation really happened or if he simply suffered from an hallucination. However, his Jounin sensei doubts that the symptoms his student described were the result of a Genjutsu or an hallucination. Genin Ozuma Shujinko also states that his teammate, Genin Uchiha Sasuke, was with him when he started feeling the symptoms, although he has yet to confirm what he supposedly witnessed. Notification of this to the parents of the Genin Ozuma Shujinko is advised."

Once he finished, his eyes met his father's. "This is a mission update from Kakashi-sensei. These are confidential. Why did Hokage-sama handed it to you?"

"Because, my son, it is time for you to know your origins, and the reason why you experienced all of these so-called symptoms."

"My origins? Tou-san, I don't understand..."

"And you shouldn't. I thought I wouldn't have to deal with this so early, but it cannot be helped. Hokage-sama and I agreed that it is time."

"Time for what?"

Daichi leaned in closer to his son. "Shujinko, there are some things that are unknown to both you and Nanami. The circumstances in which you were born, the reason why you were unaware of this all of this time... and the reason why you have awoken the Karura Tensei, the Kekkei Genkai of the Ozuma clan."

* * *

I know, I know, I'm a shameful scumbag for ending this chapter with a cliffhanger. And yes, I did promised I would explain the Karura Tensei in this chapter, but I honestly feel that this chapter is lengthy enough as it is, and adding the explanation of both Shujinko's origins and the Karura Tensei would make the chapter way too long.

Yes, I know this chapter may be dull and even boring, but it has to be that way. Let's be reasonable here: If a Genin witnessed Naruto under the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra, there's no way he would keep his mouth shut and not expect an explanation. At least Shujinko is now aware of Naruto's status as the Kyuubi's vessel, and is about to find out about his clan's past.

I would like to thank Lightningscar for his constant support and for taking the time to correct all of my chapters so far. My writing skills have vastly improved thanks to him.

Ja ne!


	13. Chapter 13

**CHAPTER 13: THE OZUMA CLAN  
**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

Shujinko blinked once, twice, thrice. "Kekkei Genkai? Ozuma clan? Tou-san, what are you talking about? We're not part of a shinobi clan."

"As strange as it may sounds, it is true." Daichi said. "You are a descendant of an ancient and powerful clan. Your eyes are proof of that."

"My eyes?" Shujinko repeated, failing to make sense of what he was hearing. "What do my eyes have to do with any of this?"

"Haven't you ever questioned why the color of your eyes and your sister's are different from mine and your mother's?"

Shujinko frowned. Daichi had often told him that the reason why the colors of his eyes were different was because of a condition he and his sister were born with. He was just a kid back in the day, and as a kid, he didn't bother to question the veracity of his father's words. He thought it was a little strange that only he and his sister were the only ones who suffered from such a strange ocular condition, but considering that he had good eyesight and nobody ever made fun of him for having golden eyes, it didn't really affected him that much. "You said it was because of an ocular condition."

"Indeed, that is what I and Masumi kept telling you. However, the reality is a lot more complicated than that." Daich said.

"What do you mean?"

Daichi sighed. "What I mean is that I have been keeping away the truth from you ever since you were born."

"Ok, this is getting ridiculous." Shujinko snapped. He had never, ever talked to his father like that, but he was far too annoyed to care at this point. "What is this truth you're talking about?"

Ignoring the tone of voice that his son was showing, Daichi continued. "For you to understand, you must first know about the history of your family. The place where I was born-"

"The place you were born? You were born here, tou-san." Shujinko interrupted.

"No, I was not. My birthplace was not this village... but Sora no Kuni."

The brown-haired boy's eyes went wide. Sora no Kuni was a foreign and almost unknown country far away from Hi no Kuni. There was little to zero information regarding Sora no Kuni, mainly because of the distance between the two countries. Shujinko once read a book in the library that talked about the different villages and communities outside the village, and the only thing he found about Sora no Kuni was that its hidden village participated in the Second Great Shinobi War against Konohagakure. While the hidden shinobi village was destroyed, the country itself survived. Apparently, the shinobi force that used to rule the land was not exactly known for their Ninjutsu, but for their prowess in technology development. It was the only reason why they actually stood a chance against Konoha in the first place.

"There are few individuals who truly know about Sora no Kuni outside the country, and I am one of them. Our clan, the Ozuma clan, was one of the most, if not the most influential clan from Sora no Kuni. Our clan's prestige and fame was comparable to that of the Uchiha when they were still around here."

"... But tou-san, that's... that's impossible! You're a merchant, not a shinobi. And kaa-san works as a secretary. How can you say we belong to a shinobi clan?"

"Because it is the truth. After the destruction of Sora no Kuni's shinobi government in the Second Great Shinobi War, all of the remaining clans wanted to take control of the country, and civil war was imminent. Our clan was possibly the strongest out of the few that survived. We were feared, and rightfully so. However, the members of the Ozuma clan were known to be arrogant and too proud for their own good. Ozuma Hotama, the clan head of our family, wanted nothing more but to declare war against the rest of the country's clans and install a dictatorship with his family as the ruling authority of the land. He was a ruthless and dangerous man who considered everyone outside the Ozuma clan to be inferior. He was so blinded by his own arrogance that he thought the Ozuma clan could defeat their foes with no truce or alliance whatsoever. While our clan's power was undoubtable, it was also the source of our sense of superiority, which proved to be our doom in the end. Several other clans agreed on a one-time alliance and joined forces against our family. Because the Ozuma clan never saw this coming, it was greatly outnumbered and at clear disadvantage. However, Ozuma Hotama was far too proud to admit defeat, and instead of surrendering, he kept on fighting. After a prolonged battle, the Ozuma clan was slaughtered. As far as I am concerned, I was the only survivor. I knew our family could not withstand the strength of the allied clans against us, and so I escaped from the conflict before it could happen. For years, I traveled around many lands before me and your mother reached Konoha, where I was able to establish small, but solid business grounds. "

At this point, Shujinko's tea was already cold. All of this time... his life had been a lie. What? There was no other word to describe it. He was still trying to assimilate the fact that Naruto held the Kyuubi inside of him, and now his father dropped another bomb. This was just too much for him to handle. His breath became agitated. Before his father could ask him if he was alright, Shujinko stood up. "I don't believe you."

"Shujinko, I am aware that this may be difficult for you to understand, but I ne-"

"Just shut the hell up, ok!? I had it with all of these secrets!" Shujinko shouted, letting all of his frustrations out. "If what you're saying is true, then why did you keep this away from me? How do you even expect me to believe that?"

"Shujinko, calm yourself!"

Shujinko glared at his father, another thing he had never done before. But then again, he had never been this angry at his father before. If he stayed one more minute inside this house, he would go insane. The golden-eyed boy simply turned around and refused to acknowledge Daichi. Before he could reach the door, Masumi entered the office. "Daichi, Shujinko, what's happening? I heard someone shouting."

"I'm going out. I can't stand staying under this roof. Don't expect me to come back soon." Shujinko ignored his mother.

Masumi stared at her son in shock. She simply could not believe the attitude displayed. "Excuse me, young man?"

"You heard me."

Without giving his mother enough time to retort, Shujinko picked up his shinobi boots from the entrance and left the house. Masumi approached her husband. "Daichi, what is going on? Why is Shujinko suddenly so worked up?"

"... I told him..."

* * *

Shujinko was currently walking through one of Konoha's many districts, looking at the ground with his hands inside his pockets. He had to be careful not to accidentally bump into anyone with a big mouth, because he was sure he would not be able to retain himself from beating the living crap out of him. Apparently, and much to his fortune, people could tell he was in a bad mood, so they made sure to stay out of his way.

His mind was just a hurricane of questions, each one of them more troubling than the previous one. He was part of a nearly extinguished clan from Sora no Kuni? His father abandoned his clan before it was destroyed? A relative of his was a man who attempted to rule the country and establish himself as the 'patriarch of the royal family'? His clan used to be as influential as the Uchiha, and apparently just as proud and arrogant?

Honestly, what the hell was happening? Naruto had the Kyuubi no Kitsune inside of him? He was the survivor of a clan that was wiped out of existence? It only made him think about how many secrets were being hidden from him regarding... everything. Just yesterday, he was a common civilian-born shinobi making his way back to his village. Now, he was one of the last Ozumas in existence and the teammate of a kid who held the most powerful Bijuu known to human kind. It all happened too fast for him to properly assimilate what was going on.

He was also angry at his parents. Why did they kept the truth from him for so long? What was their purpose?

Maybe... Maybe because his father was too ashamed of his clan's history? If the words his father told him were true, then the members of the Ozuma clan were snotty and believed themselves to be better than everyone else. Shujinko knew he would feel embarrassed of his family if they were known to be power-hungry and unreasonably proud of themselves. If he thought about it that way... then maybe he could understand his parents to a degree.

It also explained why both Daichi and Masumi constantly reminded him to be humble, to recognize his faults and to never underestimate the capacity of the others. All of their teachings and warnings caused Shujinko to despise arrogant people. Well, at least the loud ones. He could tolerate Sasuke because he, despite being arrogant, was the silent kind of arrogant. He didn't go around telling people he was better than them because of his Uchiha blood. Oh, he may think that way, but at least he didn't say it out loud. He wasn't like Naruto, whom was not arrogant, but over-confident in Shujinko's mind. The blond ninja was still too reckless for his taste, and there was a very thin line that divided over-confidence from arrogance.

It didn't explain, however, why they waited so long to tell him. Why not when he was younger? They didn't needed to go into details, just tell him that they moved from Sora no Kuni to Hi no Kuni because of a family accident or something like that. Not the entire story, but at least something remotely truthful. Then, once he grew older, they could've told him the true story behind the Ozuma clan. Instead, they decided to give him the news all at once. Brilliant.

Shujinko decided he had enough stress for the rest of the month. 'Screw this. Screw all of this. I need sushi, lots and lots of sushi.'

|20 minutes later, Yoi Sakana's sushi bar|

"Oi, Masao. Are you there?"

"Ahh, Shujinko! I see you're finally back from Nami no Kuni." Masao answered as he cooked the vegetables he used for his recipes. Masao was a fifty year-old man who wore a chef apron and a white hat. The man in question had a full-grown beard and a round, voluminous belly that matched his face. "Things have been pretty quiet around here. Spill it out, kid. Something interesting happened during your mission?"

"You don't know half of it." Shujinko said with a sigh.

"Oh, really? Do tell."

"Please, not now. I just need sushi. Can you give a super extra-large ration of Tempura rolls with double chicken, please?"

Masao nodded. "Alright, one super extra-large ration of Tempura rolls with double chicken comin' right up." he said. As he started boiling the water and filling a large bowl with rice, he glanced at the figure of the boy who was, to this day, his best client alongside his sister. Reaching for the sauce, he remembered the first day he met Shujinko.

 _|Flashback|_

 _Masao was currently doing his every day routine, which consisted in preparing the fish, vegetables and adherents he would cook later on. The quality of his recipes relied on how good his ingredients were, which was the reason why he always picked them himself early in the morning at the market districts from people he was sure they were trustworthy. After all, any chef who had an ounce of respect for himself and for the food he cooked knew how to recognize good ingredients when he saw them._

 _While he was making sure he had enough chopsticks for the rest of the day, he failed to notice a young boy entering his domain._

 _"Excuse me."_

 _The chef looked down at the individual. He was a little kid no older than eight wearing boots, dark green shorts and a grey t-shirt. He had brown, messy hair and golden eyes. The kid was looking at him with great interest, like a student wanting to ask his teacher a question. "Mornin', kid. What can I do for ya'?_

 _"I was just wondering... what's sushi?"_

 _Masao chuckled, not expecting the boy to ask such a question. "What's sushi? The best food of all the countries, that's what it is! And this old man right here, is the best sushi chef you'll ever see." he stated, pride obvious in his tone._

 _"Really? Wow, you must be really cool!"_

 _"Course' I am, kid. You tellin' me you've never tried sushi before?"_

 _The young boy stared at his feet, apparently embarrassed. "N-No. Kaa-san sends me fish for lunch sometimes, but not sushi."_

 _"So you've never had any before? Why that's a crime in itself, kid!"_

 _"Sorry!" the boy apologized, covering his face with his hands. He misunderstood what the chef meant; truly believing that not eating sushi was against the law._

 _Masao's laughter filled the room. "Don't worry bout' it, kid. Here, why don't you try some?" he asked, offering a small bowl. It was a simple recipe, intended to be for kids his age. The boy hesitated to accept the bowl, obviously still a little embarrassed. In the end, he grabbed a pair of chopsticks, muttered a shy 'Itadakimasu' and took a bite of the food. "So, watcha' think? Pretty good, right?"_

 _The little kid gulped down the food and gave Masao a wide smile. "Wow, you're right! Sushi is delicious!" he cheered, causing the chef to smirk in amusement. Before he knew it, the bowl was completely empty. "Best food ever!"_

 _"Glad you liked it, kid. By the way, what's your name? I don't feel like calling ya' kid forever."_

 _"My name is Ozuma Shujinko. Nice to meet you..."_

 _"Masao's the name."_

 _"Ok! Nice to meet you, Masao-san."_

 _Masao waved him off. "No need to be so formal with me, Shujinko. This old chef is not very fond of suffixes."_

 _|Flashback ends|_

Ever since that day, Shujinko visited Yoi Sakana's sushi bar at least twice a week. It wasn't long before Masao introduced Shujnko to the magnificent culinary world of sushi, and the boy was absolutely delighted to try out new recipes. Slowly but surely, Shujinko became somewhat of a nephew to Masao. The golden-eyed boy never had an uncle or an older brother figure. Nanami was three years-old at the time, and because Shujinko was her only brother, he had to learn the duties of being the oldest son on his own. Of course, Masao was simply too old to count as a brother for Shujinko, so they developed an uncle-nephew relationship instead, and that worked for the two of them just fine.

Meanwhile, Shujinko was slowly eating his sushi order without uttering a single word, something that troubled the owner and chef of Yoi Sakana's sushi bar. "Alright, kid. What's botherin' ya'? You haven't said anything since you started eating."

"It's nothing, Masao. I just had a rough day." Shujinko answered,

Masao scoffed at him. "Nothing my ass. It's obvious that you're upset about somethin'. You only order a super extra-large ration of Tempura rolls with double chicken when you're either angry or stressed, or the both of em'. And you keep looking at your food like you're waiting for it to start talking. If that ain't enough, you're as silent as my old man's grave. If ye' don't feel like talking to this old chef, that's fine. But don't come to my face and say there's nothin' wrong with you."

Shujinko was slightly taken aback by the statement. He never realized how observant Masao actually was. Then again, they had known each other since he was eight, and Shujinko wasn't exactly a master when it came to suppress his emotions and keeping a blank face. That was something a shinobi developed over the years, not when they were Genins. In the end, he relented. "Let's just say I just heard very... unexpected news, and I'm supposed to keep them a secret for the time being."

"How secret are we talkin' here?"

"As in Hokage-sama himself warned me to keep my mouth closed."

The sushi chef let out a chuckle. "Already receiving direct orders from Hokage-sama himself, are ya'? Never would've thought that innocent gaki I met four years ago would become such a hot-shot shinobi."

The Genin rolled his eyes. He didn't consider himself to be a hot-shot despite his obvious skills. "I just don't know what to do right now. It's like I can't talk about this to anyone, but I feel like I'll go insane if I keep this to myself for too long."

"Why don't ye' talk with Hokage-sama yourself? He's the one who told you those secret news, isn't he? From what I've heard, he has n' open door policy when it comes to talkin' with his subordinates. Ye' make it sound like you heard somethin' you weren't meant to."

"That's the point. I wasn't supposed to know about what we discussed, at least not until I was older."

"All the more reason why ye' should speak with him. Unless Hokage-sama ordered you to never speak bout'... whatever it is that you were told ever again, I don't see why ye' can't talk to him."

The Ozuma realized Masao was right. The Sandaime specifically never told him he couldn't discuss things over with him. But first, he needed to know the whole history of his clan. He left his house before his father could explain himself. Without all the facts, he wouldn't be able to come up with a proper judgement. Besides, it was time for him to know the entire truth. He deserved it. Finishing his meal, Shujinko stood up and reached for his wallet. "Thanks for the advice, Masao. Now I know what I have to do."

"Woah, hang in there, Shujinko." Masao interrupted. "Shouldn't ye' wait until the mornin' before talkin' to Hokage-sama? It's pretty damn late right now, and I doubt he's in the mood to discuss. I swear, the amount of paperwork that man has to deal with is unreal."

"Don't worry; I'll go talk to Hokage-sama some other day. First, I have to take care of some family business."

"Oh, ok. Well, see ya' later kid."

* * *

"Tou-san? Kaa-san?" Shujinko called out as he entered his residence. He was aware that both his parents had to work tomorrow and that they were probably sleeping right now, but he also doubted he would get any sleep if he didn't talked things over with them. The anxiousness he was feeling was far too much for him to ignore. He wanted some Kami damned answers.

The door of his parent's bedroom was slide open. Both Daichi and Masumi were wearing sleeping robes and holding candles. Masumi let out a gasp as watched her son. "Shujinko! Where were you?" she almost yelled. Nanami was sleeping, and there was no need for her to be included in the conversation. "Do you realize how late it is? We were worried about you!"

Shujinko chose to ignore this and bowed his head. "I apologize for my earlier behavior." he said. "I lost my composure."

Daichi shook his head. "There is no need for you to apologize. Your reaction was both expected and understandable. I lost my composure as well when I had no right to. I should be the one apologizing."

"It's alright. Still, I want to finish our conversation, as well as ask some questions."

"Most certainly." Daichi gestured both his wife and son to follow him to his office. They both obliged and entered the small room, where Shujinko's previous cup of tea was still intact. The three Ozumas sat down. "I already told you about our clan. You may ask your questions."

Shujinko took a deep breath before staring straight into his mother's eyes. "Did you know about tou-san's past?"

Masumi nodded grimly. "I did."

"Why didn't anybody told me about our clan's existence? Why did you kept this from me?"

This time, Daichi answered. "Before you get your answer, you must know about the circumstances in which you were born. As I said before, I traveled from land to land before me and Masumi reached Konoha. The village was suffering from both the destruction caused by the attack of the Kyuubi no Kitsune and the death of the Yondaime Hokage. You were only a baby at the time, born just a few months ago."

The eyes of the brown-haired boy widened in surprise. "So I wasn't born here?"

"That is the case. Because we were outsiders, we were not trusted immediately. Both the shinobi and the civilians here were paranoid at first, thinking that we might be spies from another village who wanted to take advantage of the village's critical state. It took us a great deal of time and effort to prove them otherwise. Sandaime-sama had no other choice but to come back from his retirement and accept the responsibility of watching over the village a second time. Because the village needed commerce and population, he allowed me to stay here under the condition of actively contributing with the reconstruction of the village. Of course, I accepted the offer since I needed to provide the best possible life to my wife and son. My intention was to keep my past a secret, but something prevented me from doing so."

"What happened?"

"... You opened your eyes."

Shujinko stared at his father, looking at him like he was mental. "I... What?"

"You opened your eyes for the first time... and your Irises were of a golden color. Golden eyes were an unmistakable genetical trait of the Ozuma clan. In that moment, I knew I had to tell Hokage-sama about my decadence."

"Wait a minute! You said golden eyes were a genetical trait of the Ozuma clan. So how come I have them but neither you nor kaa-san does?" Shujinko asked. A horrible idea came to his head as his face went pale. "Am... Am I a-adopt-"

"No, Shujinko!" Masumi interrupted abruptly. "I swear it's not like that. You and Nanami are both my children, as well as Daichi's."

Shujinko let out a huge sigh. "I-Im sorry. I just thought that... with my eyes and yours..." he trailed off.

"An understandable assumption." Daichi said. "Now, the reason why the color of my eyes and Masumi's are different from yours and Nanami's is simple. I met your mother time after escaping the conflict that the Ozuma clan brought upon himself. She is not an Ozuma because of her birth origins, but because of our marriage. As for me..."

"Yeah?"

"... My eyes are of this color because the Ozuma genes inside of me never awoken. They are a part of me, but they never manifested themselves. It was a very rare condition that almost none of my ancestors suffered from." Daichi spoke, and for the first time in his life, Shujinko saw his father show clear emotional signs. He was sad, and even ashamed of himself. "Because my dormant Ozuma genes, I was considered a disgrace among my family. My father... he spent his life constantly pointing out how much of a failure I was. Both my father and the Ozuma elders decided that I was not worthy of calling myself an Ozuma. Because of that, I never received any kind of ninja training or education, because I would only 'dishonor the name of the Ozuma clan in battle'." he spat those last words. "I became a servant of my own blood. They told me I should consider myself fortunate. The only reason I was allowed inside the clan's domain was because of my mother's pleas of mercy."

Shujinko simply couldn't believe what his father was telling him. His ancestors were really that heartless and disgusting? 'Tou-san.. You're like Naruto in a way.'

Daichi continued. "My mother, Ozuma Nyoko, was a peaceful, kind-hearted woman who defied the words of both the Ozuma Elders and the clan head and decided to raise me as best as she could. She was the only one to ever treat me with gentleness. My father made sure that I was not to be taught anything regarding shinobi education, which is the reason why I was never able to become a ninja. However, my mother told me I could still be useful in another way. Behind my family's back, she hired a personal tutor to instruct me in the ways of the trade. The Ozuma clan was very wealthy, and had little need for its members to become merchants. Not to mention, the Ozumas saw themselves as warriors, not merchants, for such a profession was below them. My mother convinced my clan to let me be taught by this instructor, a man by the name of Atsushi, arguing that I would finally become of use. After some time, the clan allowed Atsushi to be my mentor. He was another very important figure of my youth, and we shared a similar bond like the one you share with your sensei, Hatake-san. All of that happened thanks to my mother. She, alongside Masumi and Nanami, are the only woman I care about in my life."

The golden-eyed boy felt his heart relaxing. At least there used to be one decent person in the Ozuma clan, his grandmother. "So, Nyoko-obaa-san was my grandmother. Who was my grandfather?"

"... His name was... Ozuma Hotama."

"W-What!?" Shujinko chocked. Ozuma Hotama was the leader of the Ozuma clan, the man who attempted to install a dictatorship, and his Kami-damned grandfather!? 'My own grandfather... lead my ancestors to their deaths because of his pride... I can't believe this.'

"That is correct." Daichi said, his face darkening. "Ozuma Hotama was my father, and the clan's leader. Imagine his disgrace, when his own son and heir was not born a proper Ozuma. His shame was so great that he neglected me to the point of denying the fact that I was his descendent. To him, I was a little more than a slave, an extra mouth to feed. Of course, he had to ensure his legacy, and had three other children with my mother Nyoko, whom were born with golden eyes, much to his relief. He corrupted them with his arrogance, and led them to believe that they were superior to everyone else because of their blood. Now that he had real sons, he could pursue his dream of unifying all of Sora no Kuni under his clan symbol, and become the Daimyo of the land."

"The years went by, and war seemed inevitable. A handful of well-known clans offered my father the chance of forming an alliance with them. Of course, my father refused every single petition, stating that 'the Ozuma clan had no need to join forces with inferior clans'. The other members thought the same as him, obviously. Only my mother and I were able to see the bigger picture, and she feared for the future and survival of our family. Because of that, she revealed to me a secret: She had been gathering all the information she could about our clan, from its history to our techniques. She hoped that the memory of our clan wouldn't fade away because of the war, and entrusted me with the task of keeping our archives safe. Nyoko was a visionary woman, and knew what would most likely happen to our clan. That was the reason why she wanted me to learn about commerce, so I could make a living and keep the Ozuma name alive."

"Dormant Ozuma genes may only manifest themselves if combined with the genes of a non-Ozuma. That is the reason why the colors of your eyes are different from mine. Masumi was from another land and had no family name. Your genes are the combination of her's and my dormant Ozuma genes. In my clan, whoever had dormant Ozuma genes had no right to celebrate marriage. Our ancestors believed that the only individuals worthy enough to marry an Ozuma was another Ozuma, such was their extent of their arrogance. Had I married a fellow Ozuma, our son would've come out just like me, with dormant genes. But you, you have the power of our clan inside. Your eyes show it."

"The power of our clan?" Shujinko asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"The Ozuma clan was the wielder of a powerful Kekkei Genkai, the Karura Tensei. The Karura Tensei is awoken when experienced a certain amount of stress, which is what happened during your fight at the bridge. The power of this Kekkei Genkai is truly remarkable, but that shall be explained tomorrow in the presence of Hokage-sama. It would be unwise and irresponsible for me to overload you with secrets and explanations after everything that has been revealed to you just now."

Masumi, who had stayed silent throughout the entire conversation, suddenly stood up. "I think we should continue this tomorrow. It's getting late, and both I and Daichi have to work tomorrow."

Shujinko nodded, staring silently at the ground. Eventually, the three Ozumas left Daichi's office. Masumi offered some sleeping tea to her husband and son. Daichi politely refused, stating that he had enough tea for the day. Shujinko, however, thanked his mother and waited for her in a chair near the stairs. 10 minutes later, Masumi approached Shujinko with two hot cups of tea. Shujinko took one cup and had to resist the urge to swallow it all at once. This had been, without a doubt, the most stressful day of his life, from learning that his teammate had the Kyuubi inside of him to finding out that he was a descendant of an ancient, powerful and extremely disappointing clan. It took the brown-haired boy one sip of his tea to realize that his mother had thrown some extra leaves inside his tea, undoubtedly so he could feel the sleeping effects sooner.

He silently thanked her for that.

Once his tea was finished, both mother and son shared a tight hug. "I'm so sorry you had to find out like this, sweetie. We were afraid of how you would react. I know it's a stupid excuse, but please-"

"Kaa-san, it's... It's alright. I mean, this is a lot to take in, but I don't blame you or tou-san. Eiter that, or I am way too tired to blame anyone right now."

She chuckled weakly. "That's good to know. I love you, sweetie. You know that?"

"Yeah. Love you too. Good night, kaa-san."

"Good night, baby boy."

Shujinko went straight to his room, blinking repeatedly as he started to lose focus. He took off his shorts and shirt, leaving himself with only his boxers. The warm blankets of his bed welcomed its master, and Shujinko was only able to stare at the ceiling for five seconds before he was asleep.

* * *

Chapter 13 everybody.

There you have it. That's the story of the Ozuma clan. I hope I was able to cover your expectations. I have to admit, it took me a long time to finally came up with a descent story about the Ozuma clan. I guess you could say they were a mix between the Uchiha and the Uzumaki clan. They were as arrogant and well-known as the Uchiha, and were wiped out by a shinobi alliance like the Uzumaki. The idea of belonging to an honorable and respected clan that tragically disappeared sounded boring and generic to me, so I decided to make the Ozuma clan a snotty and condescending family, mainly because it contrasts with Shujinko's personality.

Next chapter: The Karura Tensei

Ja ne!


	14. Chapter 14

**CHAPTER 14: KARURA TENSEI!**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

"Come in." the old and wary voice of the Hokage called. "Ahh, Daichi-san, Shujinko-kun, just the two individuals that I wanted to see."

Both father and son bowed deeply. "You called for us, Hokage-sama?" Daichi asked.

"As a matter of fact, I did." The Hokage replied, lighting his favorite tobacco pipe and opening the window of his office so the smoke wouldn't bother the Ozumas. He usually didn't smoke this early, but he couldn't help it. What? He was an old man, and he had a right to enjoy one of the few bad habits he had left. "His gaze met Shujinko's. "How have you been feeling lately, my boy?"

Shujinko shrugged his shoulders. "Reasonably, I suppose. The last few days have been... quite revealing for me."

Hiruzen nodded. "Of course, I can only imagine your surprise."

"My son has already been informed about the history of our clan, Hokage-sama. But we still have yet to talk about the Karura Tensei." Daichi stated.

"Tou-san, you keep talking about the Karura Tensei, but you still haven't explained anything."

"That is the reason why I called for the both of you." the Hokage started to say. "I shall be the one to explain you some aspects regarding the Karura Tensei, the Kekkei Genkai of the Ozuma clan."

The golden-eyed boy looked at the village leader confused. "Huh? But why bother yourself, Hokage-sama? As much as I wish to know about the Karura Tensei, I don't want to waste your time."

"I disagree, Shujinko-kun. You are the only current wielder of your clan's Kekkei Genkai. Your father was born inside a shinobi clan, yet he was never raised as one, as I am sure he has already told you. Therefore, I dare say I am better suited for the task of explaining you the Karura Tensei. Besides, judging by what I have already studied from the scrolls Daichi-san lent me, this particular Kekkei Genkai contains information that only a handful of ninjas have knowledge of. Luckily, I happen to be one of the few shinobis alive who can explain the secrets that this Kekkei Genkai holds."

Shujinko's breath became agitated without him realizing it. So that was the reason why his father wasn't able to explain him in what consisted the infamous Karura Tensei. It made sense, and it also explained why Daichi also seemed to understand and use shinobi terms more easily than other civilian parents.

The Sarutobi coughed before addressing Shujinko. "Very well, let's start with the history of the Karura Tensei, shall we?" he said as he retrieved several scrolls from a secret compartment of his desk. "First of all, you should know how the Karura Tensei came to be. According to the scrolls of the Ozuma clan, the Karura Tensei was the outcome of an agreement between the founder of your clan, Ozuma Kazemaru, and Karura, a divine being from times long past ours. Is this correct, Daichi-san?"

"It is, Hokage-sama."

"Excellent. From what ancient stories tell, Karura was known as the 'Mother of all hawks', for she was their ancestor. As a matter of fact, hawks were a big part of the Ozuma clan's culture. Their very own banner used to be a hawk, actually. Alas, I am missing the point here. Apparently, Karura's days were numbered, and in order to continue her legacy in this world, she made an agreement with a human, Kazemaru. In exchange for transferring her soul into his, Kazemaru was to create a clan under the Ozuma name and expand her legend throughout his descendants. Slowly but surely, the Ozuma clan came into existence under the leadership of the now Ozuma Kazemaru."

The brown-haired youth scratched the back of his head. "So, I'm guessing that Ozuma Kazemaru obtained the Karura Tensei when Karura added her soul to his?"

"Indeed, Shujinko-kun. The Karura Tensei, or 'Karura's resurrection' if you will, is exactly what Karura had in mind. She would be reincarnated in every member of the Ozuma clan. As you ought to know, a Kekkei Genkai is a genetically trait passed down from generations. Now, I believe we had enough history. Shujinko-kun, have you ever heard anything about Senjutsu?"

"Senjutsu?" Shujinko repeated. "I don't think so, Hokage-sama. What is it?"

"In specific terms, Senjutsu is a very, very special field of techniques were the user draws the energy of nature inside of them and blend it with their own chakra, thus creating Senjutsu chakra. Those who learn how to absorb and manipulate Senjutsu chakra are usually known as Sages. Learning how to absorb and manipulate Senjutsu chakra extremely helpful in battle, and it has other uses outside."

"But... If becoming a Sage is so helpful, why haven't I heard of any Sage?"

"Because becoming a Sage is extremely difficult. There are certain places where one can train Senjutsu, which are hard to find. Then, you have to find someone who actually knows Senjutsu and is willing to teach you. To my knowledge, there are very few individuals who know Senjutsu, so finding one of them and convince him to teach you is even harder than finding a place where you can train. Last, but certainly not least, the reason why there are so many few Sages is because the training required for becoming a Sage is long and extremely challenging, not to mention it has its fair share of life-threatening risks. That, Shujinko-kun, is the reason why there aren't many Sages."

Shujinko nodded in understanding. It made sense, he thought. The greater the power, the harder it was to control it. He couldn't help but think of Naruto, who had a freaking Bijuu inside of him. And not just any Bijuu, but the Kyuubi. All of that evil chakra had to be nearly impossible to control, or even retain. 'Yondaime-sama must have been a genius to come up with a seal that strong.' "Hokage-sama, I hope you don't mind if I ask, are you a Sage?"

The Sandaime chuckled. "I like to think myself as wise, but no. I have never attempted to learn Senjutsu."

The answer caught Shujinko off guard. "Then, how do you know so much about Senjutsu? Judging by what you said, Senjutsu doesn't sounds like something anyone can read about in the library."

"Like I said before, there are very few individuals who know Senjutsu. Luckily, I happen to know some of them. The Shodaime Hokage, for example, was a very skilled Sage. Jiraiya, one of my pupils, was also able to learn Senjutsu from the toads, earning himself the moniker of the 'Gama Sennin'."

Shujinko was aghast. "Gama Sennin? But... I-I mean... Toads?" he asked, failing to make sense. He knew the Sannin was strong, very strong. The mere thought of such a skilled warrior learning something as supposedly complex as Senjutsu from a toad was... ridiculous, to say the least.

"Of course, they weren't ordinary toads." Hiruzen explained, realizing that Shujinko was not understanding. "But I believe that is a story for another time. Now, you might be wondering why I am telling you all of this. The Karura Tensei is basically a transformation that allows you to gather Nature Chakra in a matter of seconds and enter a very special form called Hawk Sage Mode. In other words, the Kekkei Genkai of the Ozuma clan allowed them to become Sages. You claimed to have experienced a sudden increase of your eyesight while fighting Haku, correct? That is one of the traits of the Karura Tensei. Hawks have extraordinary eyesight, which is one of the reasons why they are such dangerous predators. According to the scrolls of your clan, upon activating the Karura Tensei, your eyes become like those of a hawk, increasing your perception and allowing you to clearly see objects moving at high speed."

That was when Shujinko recalled something. When Haku was throwing senbon needles at him, he couldn't see them until they were already nailed inside of him. However, once he awakened the Karura Tensei, he was able to spot them right away, and even deflect them with his kunais. He never realized that until this very moment. He had a thousand thoughts running inside his head back then, acting out of pure reflex and allowing the adrenaline to take over his body. No thinking, just action. "I see... Well, that'll definitely come in handy. Is there anything else the Karura Tensei can do?"

"From what I discovered, the Ozuma clan had a natural affinity towards the wind element. While I am still uncertain regarding the reason why, I've come up with a theory that might explain this." the Hokage said.

That was another thing that picked Shujinko's interest. Ever since he discovered element-based Ninjutsu, he had attempted to learn one from each element. For some reason he ignored back then, wind-based Ninjutsu seemed to come easier to him in comparison with the other elemental-based jutsus. He once read from a scroll that every single shinobi had an affinity towards one element. Some of them even had two, though they were rare cases. A shinobi's natural element was normally the one from his country, like how most of Konoha shinobi had an affinity towards fire because they were born in Hi no Kuni, the Land of Fire. However, a ninja could be born with any natural affinity at the end of the day, meaning that they were not necessarily bound to their land's element. When he found out about this, the only assumption he could come up with was that he had an affinity towards wind, considering that he barely made any progress with the other jutsus he practiced. While the idea of owning a jutsu from each of the five elements was certainly tempting, Shujinko realized that was close to impossible for him at his current level. Instead, he focused his work on wind-based attacks. The only non-wind jutsu he could perform was the Doton: Iwadeppo no Jutsu and he had a long way ahead of him before he could truly say he had mastered that technique.

"For starters, ninjas from Sora no Kuni had an inclination towards wind affinity. Not only that, but especially the members of the Ozuma clan. In my humble opinion, the fact that Karura was a bird-like deity may have something to do with your clan's natural affinity. Hawks are aerial predators, after all, and they were more than just an icon to your clan. Of course, this idea of mine might very well be nothing but rubbish." the Hokage chuckled.

Daichi spoke up. "I beg to differ, Hokage-sama. Your conclusions are actually quite accurate. My family always proclaimed that we were hawks reincarnated into humans. According to our history, the moment Karura merged her soul with our ancestor's, our chakra acquired wind affinity. Wind is the element of the hawks, their natural environment. It was only expected of us to learn their ways and claim the wind as our affinity. The Karura Tensei drastically empowers wind jutsus. The Ozuma clan was the owner of several wind jutsus of considerable caliber."

Shujinko tried his best not to roll his eyes. The more his father talked about his clan, the more disappointed Shujinko became. How could a clan be so full of itself to the point of having its members 'claim the wind as their affinity'? How do you even claim the wind on the first place? "This is a lot to take in." he commented, not knowing what to say in order to change the subject.

"And that is quite understandable, Shujinko-kun." the Sarutobi replied. "As a matter of fact, I would be concerned if none of this had an impact on you. There are other things that shall be revealed to you regarding your clan, but it would be thoughtless of me to continue this conversation more than necessary. You must be quite shocked as of now. With that in mind, we shall finish this reunion with this: Part of the agreement between me and your father was that, once the history of the Ozuma clan was revealed to you, the Ozuma clan was to be reinstated here in Konohagakure. As of now, your family is recognized as a legitimate shinobi clan of the village, just like the Hyuuga, the Inuzuka, the Nara clan and many others. Of course, Kakashi and your teammates are to be informed of this, as well as both the civilian and the shinobi council. Daichi-san, I expect you tomorrow at the meeting at 08:00 AM. Your testimony is of vital importance."

"Of course, Hokage-sama. I shall be there."

"Excellent. And before I forget, now that you are unofficially a clan that not only owns a foreign Kekkei Genkai, but also is on the brink of extinction, you are to receive a monthly payment according to Konoha's 'Clan Restoration Program'. As the head of the Ozuma clan, you are entitled to a seat inside the shinobi council. Even if you are a civilian, you are anything but ignorant regarding shinobi matters and customs. Furthermore, you have both my recommendation and approval, something no clan head can ignore."

Daichi wanted to refuse both the monthly payment and the seat. There was no need for him to accept something he considered to be similar to charity. He and Masumi were hard workers, they provided for their family just fine. And just because he came from a shinobi clan, it didn't mean he knew exactly how shinobi worked. Everything he knew was from his observations. He was a merchant, not a ninja or a politician. Still, he was aware that he had little choice. He owed the Hokage a great deal, after all.

The Hokage inhaled his pipe one more time. "I believe we are finished here. Daichi-san, Shujinko-kun, you are both dismissed."

* * *

|Training Ground 3|

Shujinko decided to visit the Training Ground 3, the place where Team 7 usually had their meetings. After all he just heard, he needed to take his mind off of everything and be alone for a while. He had been slacking off lately, so target practice sounded like a great idea to both distract himself and to make sure his aim was still at an acceptable level.

After warming up for ten minutes, Shujinko approached a wooden dummy that was nearby. He was so distracted by the news that he forgot to bring his shuriken pouch, so shuriken practice was out of the question. Focusing his gaze on the target in front of him, Shujinko quickly took out his kunai out of its holster and threw it. The kunai hit the target a couple of inches away from the center and, while it wasn't a bad shot, it wasn't as good as Shujinko thought it would be. He took a deep breath and threw a second kunai. Apparently, his aim had somewhat worsened over the last few days, for the second kunai imbedded itself even further from the center. An average shot at best.

The Genin was starting to get frustrated. He might not excel at everything he did, but there was no way he would accept being average at kunai throwing, or at anything for that matter. 'Oh, give me a break. I may not have trained these last few days, but I can't possibly be so out of shape.' he thought in distress. He let out a small growl out of frustration and threw the last two kunais he had inside his holster.

THUCK

THUCK

Shujinko's eye twitched. The kunais almost hit the corner of the target. A few inches more and they would've passed right next to the wooden dummy. 'Ok, this is getting ridiculous. That was bad even for an Academy student. Even Nanami could've done better. What the hell is wrong with me?'

He had his answer the moment he retrieved his kunais out of the wooden dummy. His kunais were so blunt and unsharpened that Shujinko doubted they could cut anything besides vegetables. And if that wasn't enough, he also noticed how unbalanced they were. Now that he thought about it, it had been a long time since he bought a new set of weapons. He usually bought second-hand equipment in order to save money. He came from a civilian family (or at least that's what he used to think) and his parents couldn't afford to buy their son shinobi tools of the highest quality, not when they had other things to worry about like food, water, etc. The Ozuma clan was far from being poor, but far from being rich at the same time. The only time when Shujinko had the chance to train with high quality items was when Sasuke allowed him to use his kunais, and that rarely ever happened.

But now that he was a ninja, he had his own money to spend. He had already received his first share of the payment from the bridge mission. That, combined with his previous savings, resulted in a heavy wallet. 'Well, what's the point of saving money if I'm never going to spend it? I deserve a little treat.' Shujinko thought with glee. Even though the brown-haired boy always took good care of his weapons, they all eventually reached a point where they had little use left, especially those of lower quality.

A few minutes later, Shujinko found himself walking through the streets of Konoha, looking left and right for a shop that sold shinobi equipment of good quality. He saw a few of them, but didn't bother to go inside. From the looks of it, those were shops designated for Jounins and maybe even ANBU. He may have some money of his own, but there was no way he could afford anything that those shops offered. 'Come on, there's gotta be some place where I can actually buy something.' Shujinko thought. While he was wandering around, he suddenly noticed a shop smaller than the ones he saw earlier. He approached it, and next to the door was a sign that read 'Hirotoko's Weapon Shop'. Shujinko stared at the sign for a couple of seconds, and then shrugged his shoulders. 'Might as well have a look.'

The doorbell rang as he entered the shop. It wasn't large, or at least not compared to the other stores he visited earlier. Still, the room was simple, clean and tidy and displayed a fair share of ninja tools hanging in the walls as well as inside the glass display cases. Shujinko identified immediately every weapon inside the shop, and was glad to see that the store not only sold weapons, but accessories like holsters, medical kits, weapon sealing scrolls, Kenjutsu guides, sharpening tools, smoke bombs and explosive tags as well. If anything, the shop was well-equipped.

As he observed a beautifully crafted katana that was being displayed in one of the wooden shelves, Shujinko heard a feminine voice shout from upstairs. "Coming!"

He turned around to see a girl not much older than him reach the cash register of the store. She was wearing a pink, sleeveless Chinese shirt and blue shinobi pants. Her brunet hair, slightly darker than his, was done in two buns that reminded Shujinko of a panda. They had about the same skin color, and her brown eyes complimented her hair. Her headband was proof of her status as a kunoichi. The girl offered him a smile. "Hello, welcome to Hirotoko's Weapon Shop. Is there anything I can help you with?"

Shujinko smiled back. "Hey there. Yeah, I just wanted to know what's the price for a new set of kunais. The ones I have right now are pretty much beyond use." he said, taking out a kunai of his own.

The girl briefly examined the weapon Shujinko was holding and smiled slightly. "I can tell. The price for a set of kunais is 300 ryos."

Inside his mind, Shujinko groaned. That was roughly twice the price he used to pay for his second-hand kunai set. Still, he was able to keep the smile on his face, acting like nothing was wrong. 'Besides, that price is lower than the ones of the other stores. I doubt I'll find a better one.' "Great. Do you mind if I take a look at them first?"

"Sure. I'll be right back." she said as she left the room, coming back a minute later holding a cushioned box with six kunais inside. "These were sharpened just yesterday."

The Ozuma took one kunai out of the box. The weapon was heavier than the ones he was used to, and larger too. The craftsmanship was, to say the least, remarkable. He was no weapons expert, but he was still willing to bet that it took days to whoever forged the knife to finish it. His first instinct was to try it out right there inside the store, but his rational-self told him otherwise. "This is impressive. Who made these?" Shujinko asked as he was truly curious.

"Tou-san did. He's one of the best blacksmiths of the village." the girl answered, pride evident in her voice.

"Well, he sure knows his trade. I'll take them."

Shujinko handed the money over to the girl, who proceeded to carefully put the kunais inside a small box. While she was doing this, Shujinko's eyes lingered around the store. That was when he saw one weapon that caught his attention. It was a Fuuma Shuriken, and a brand new one at that. The weapon was being displayed inside of a glassy wardrobe so customers could see what was inside, and Shujinko was nearly infatuated. It took him a great deal of restrain and willpower to keep himself from taking the Fuuma Shuriken out of its place and run to the nearest training ground.

"That's the last one we have for sale." the kunoichi commented, her tone indicating that she was rather amused.

The Genin was taken aback by the girl's casual comment and feigned ignorance. "Come again?"

"That Fuuma Shuriken you were just ogling at. It's the last one we have for sale."

"I wasn't ogling at it. I was just... Ok, I was ogling at it. How much for the Fuuma Shuriken?"

The girl pursed her lips in a thoughtful manner. "Since it's the last one, you get the 15 % special store discount, leaving the price at... 550 ryos."

This time, Shujinko didn't bother to hide his conflicted facial expression. He had about 565 ryos left inside his wallet after buying the kunai set. He would go near bankrupt should he buy the Fuuma Shuriken. Part of growing up as a shinobi was learning how to manage your expenses, and ninjas who had no clan affiliation whatsoever had to be even more careful with their money since they had no clan patrimony they could rely on. The shinobi lifestyle was anything but glamorous, and the chances of retiring from shinobi duty and spending the rest of your life living out of your earned money were slim due to the fact that being a shinobi implied waking up every morning and acknowledging the fact that this day could be your last. Dead people don't get to spend money.

He didn't want to spend almost all of the money he had left.

He didn't want to go back home with an almost empty wallet.

No money was equal to no sushi from Yoi Sakana's Sushi Bar.

He didn't want to starve.

But neither did he want to miss the opportunity to have his very own Fuuma Shuriken.

"All of the Fuuma Shuriken from next week's batch are already pre-ordered. I'm not trying to pressure you or anything like that, but I honestly don't know how much longer the weapon will stay here."

And that sly vixen wasn't making things easier!

'You know what? Screw it. I've fought against an A-class Missing Nin, I was showered in senbon needless and paralyzed for days, I discovered that my teammate has the Kyuubi no Kitsune sealed inside of him, that I descend from a clan filled with snotty pricks and that I have a freakin' Kekkei Genkai. All of that in less than a month. I deserve a little treat. Besides, it's not like I'm throwing away my money or anything like that. It's like an early birthday present from me to me.' Shujinko nodded to himself. He had made up his mind. "Alright, hand that Fuuma Shuriken over." he said as he emptied his wallet. The girl smiled in triumph and sealed both the kunai set and the Fuuma Shuriken inside of a sealing scroll. According to the store policy, all purchases over 800 ryos included a small, basic sealing scroll to carry the weapons easier. Once the weapons were inside the scroll, Shujinko couldn't help but ask. "You know, I don't recall seeing in you back at the Academy. I assume this isn't your first year as a Genin?"

"Yeah, I graduated last year with my team. Why do you ask?"

Shujinko shrugged. "Just curious. By the way, my name is Ozuma Shujinko. Nice to meet you." Shujinko gave her an easy-going smile. As the old custom dictated, one must introduce himself before asking for someone else's name.

The girl replied in kind. "Tenten. Nice to meet you too."

"Tenten, huh? I have to say, I really like this store. Do you work here often?"

"Most of my free time. Whenever I'm not on a mission, really."

The Ozuma nodded in understanding. "I see. Well, I have to get going. See you later, Tenten." Shujinko waved her goodbye as he walked out of the store. The bun-haired girl smiled back and waved goodbye back.

Itching to try out his newly acquired shinobi tools, Shujinko raced his way to the nearest training ground, which happened to be Training Ground 5. Once he arrived, he made sure no one was there before unsealing the kunai set, leaving the Fuuma Shuriken for later. Replacing his old and blunt kunais for the new ones, Shujinko stepped in front of a wooden dummy and made sure to keep a fair distance between his target and himself. Focusing his gaze on the center of the target, he quickly opened his kunai holster and threw the weapon at the wooden dummy.

Upon hearing a loud THUCK, Shujinko lifted his gaze and saw the results of his attempt.

Bullseye.

He let out a wide grin. 'I knew I wasn't out of shape! Man, these kunais really are worth their price. Still, I have to test all of them out to make sure that wasn't a lucky shot.' he thought as he started to aim to the wooden dummy's head. After throwing the other five kunais and getting five consecutive bullseyes, Shujinko decided that switching to good-quality items had been a great idea. He made a mental note to start buying his equipment at Tenten's store.

'Speaking of which... That Tenten chick was actually kind of pretty.'

* * *

|5 hours later, 20:00 P.M.|

Shujinko was currently lying on his bed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he read one of the books he borrowed from the library. After his kunai practice, which went rather well, he decided to find out more about Senjutsu and its applications. Very much to his surprise, there were several tittles that caught his attention, like 'The influence of nature: Use the terrain to your advantage' and 'To be one with nature'. Unfortunately, the tittles were misleading, and mostly referred to camouflage techniques and tips. The few pieces of information he was able to get his hands on were nothing but unconfirmed theories that brought more questions than answers. It was frustrating, but not entirely unexpected.

'This is going nowhere.' Shujinko sighed out of frustration and closed the book. 'No matter how much I search, I can't find anything remotely related to Senjutsu. I need to have a look at our clan's scrolls. It's the only reliable source of information I have.'

('Knock knock') "Oni-chan, are you there?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Can you help me with my homework?"

The brown-haired boy groaned. "Chibi-chan, what do I always tell you? You need to do your homework with anticipation, not the night before Monday."

"But it's not my fault! It's Iruka-sensei's! The only thing he does is talk about boring stuff. The homework he gives us is boring, too!"

"What does that… (Sigh) Alright, get over here. But this is the last time I'll help you with your homework on a Sunday night, you got it?"

"Yay! Thanks, oni-chan!" Nanami said as she entered her brother's room. The two of them sat down and Nanami opened the little notebook she used to write down the answers for her homework. "The first question is: Name five different shinobi tools."

"Oh, come on! That one's pretty easy. You don't need my help."

"Yes, I do! I already have kunai and shuriken, but I'm missing three other tools."

Shujinko let out yet another sigh. "Alright, here you go: Tanto, ninjato and Fuuma Shuriken."

Nanami grinned as she wrote down the rest of her answer. "Next one says: Explain the Bunshin no Jutsu."

"The Bunshin no Jutsu is a technique that allows you to create intangible copies of yourself using the Ram, Snake and Tiger hand signs. It's used for-"

"Oni-chan, what does intangible means?"

"It basically means transparent. In other words, they can't touch anything and everything that touches them will make them disappear."

"But then why do we have to learn the Bunshin no Jutsu? It's stupid!"

"Chibi-chan, the Bunshin no Jutsu is not stupid."

"Yes, it is! Imagine if I threw an intangible kunai at someone. Nothing would happen!"

"I can think of a few uses for it." Shujinko replied as he started to list every possible use he could think of. "You could use it for a distraction, you could use it to force your enemy to move around, you could…" he trailed off. Then, an epiphany. Out of nowhere, he hugged his little sister and gave her a kiss on her left cheek. "And you just gave me a wonderful idea! Thanks, chibi-chan!"

"O-Oni-chan! Stop it!" Nanami squealed between giggles.

Shujinko did as requested and let his sister go. "You know what? I'm such in a good mood that I'll finish your homework. You go off to bed now and I'll leave it in your room once I'm finished. How does that sounds?"

"Really!? Thanks, oni-chan! You're the best!"

"I know, I know. Now go to your bedroom before kaa-san finds out that you don't have your homework ready."

"Alright! Good night, oni-chan!"

"Good night, chibi-chan." Shujinko said as Nanami left the room. Bolting out of his bed, Shujinko sat down on his desk and finished Nanami's homework as fast as he could; making sure that his calligraphy was a little wobbly so Iruka wouldn't tell the difference. Once he had his sister's homework done, he took a scroll out of his desk's drawer and opened it. Covering his calligraphy brush with ink, Shujinko started devising his newest idea.

 _Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu_

The concept was simple. Combining the Bunshin no Jutsu with the Henge, Shujinko would create intangible kunai clones that would follow a real kunai in movement, catching his opponent off guard and forcing him to move around in order to evade the incoming kunais. The trick relied on tricking the opponent into thinking that the kunai clones were real and dangerous, not intangible objects that would cause no damage whatsoever upon impact.

This was not, by any means, a lethal technique to attack anyone with. It was a supplementary jutsu, a D-rank at the very best. Still, there was pride behind its development. It was going to be his very first original jutsu, as basic and puny as it was. He felt like a blacksmith forging his very first weapon. It may not be perfect, but it would be his and his only.

'And now, the hand signs.' Shujinko thought as he wrote down the concept of his 'soon-to-be-first-jutsu-ever-created' on the scroll. This was definitely going to be tricky, but he had an idea. The same way his jutsu combined the Bunshin no Jutsu and the Henge, he would combine the hand signs of both the Bunshin no Jutsu and the Henge in a single go. He supposed he had to start with Ram and Snake, the hand signs of the Bunshin technique, taking into consideration that he first had to create something before changing its shape. Then, he would have to add one hand sign or two into the combination before finishing the line with the Tiger hand sign, which was the last hand sign required to perform the Bunshin no Jutsu.

In other words, the hand sign sequence would be something like this:

Ram, Snake, hand sign X, hand sign Y, Tiger.

He had to be careful with the X and Y hand signs. Certain hand signs were alienated with elemental jutsus, like the Tiger hand sign for Katon. The only hand sign required for the Henge was the Ram, so he needed to replace Ram with two other different hand signs. Otherwise, the kunai clones would appear next to his left and right, and not following the original kunai. After an hour or so of deciding which ones would serve their purpose and which would not, Shujinko gathered a few candidates: The Bird, the Hare and the Rat hand signs. This left the equation like this:

Ram, Snake, Bird, Hare, Tiger.

Ram, Snake, Bird, Rat, Tiger.

Ram, Snake, Hare, Rat, Tiger.

Ram, Snake, Hare, Bird, Tiger.

Ram, Snake, Rat, Bird, Tiger.

Ram, Snake, Rat, Hare, Tiger.

'One of these has to be it.' Shujinko thought as he stood up from his desk and pulled out a kunai. Before trying any of the combinations, he first had to picture two other kunais coming out of the original kunai and following its trajectory. That's what he did when he performed the Bunshin no Jutsu, so applying the same thing into this idea made sense. Straightening up and visualizing the two kunais coming out of the original, he threw the kunai up using little strength and performed the first set of hand signs.

Ram, Snake, Bird, Hare, Tiger.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu."

The kunai landed on the floor making a small THUD noise. Absolutely nothing happened.

'Worth a shot, I guess. Ok, let's make this one count.' Shujinko thought as he threw the kunai and performed the next set of hand signs.

Ram, Snake, Bird, Rat, Tiger.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu."

This time, something did happen. Looking at both his sides, Shujinko saw two regular clones performing the Tiger hand sign. He performed the Bunshin no Jutsu. Nothing more, nothing less.

'That's another set of hand signs I won't be using. Next.'

Ram, Snake, Hare, Rat, Tiger.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu."

As he finished the Tiger hand sign, he ended up receiving both a good AND bad result. Two other kunais came into existence. That was what he was going for, but there was a tiny bit of a problem…

He also casted a Henge on himself. He turned into a kunai along with the other clones.

Dispelling the Henge, Shujinko returned to his true form. 'One set of hand signs down the toilet. Come on, this one's has to be the correct one.'

Ram, Snake, Hare, Bird, Tiger.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu."

A pulse of chakra… and then nothing. He ended up with the same result as his first attempt.

'Damn it! What am I doing wrong? I'm getting nothing but these useless results. But I can't give up now. I can't give up on my own jutsu.'

Ram, Snake, Rat, Bird, Tiger.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu."

POOF POOF

Two kunais came into existence… next to Shujinko's left and right. The original kunai landed on the floor making yet another THUD noise. The other two kunais dissipated as soon as they touched the floor.

Shujinko was sulking by now. 'That was so close! They were supposed to materialize out of the kunai, not out of me! Urghh, this is so lame.' He let out a sigh. 'I might as well try the last set of hand signs. I have nothing to lose. Maybe Kakashi-sensei will help me out with this jutsu one of these days. Still, I would've liked to complete this jutsu on my own. Ok, here goes nothing.'

Ram, Snake, Rat, Hare, Tiger.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu."

POOF POOF

As if Kami himself answered his prayers, two objects materialized out of thin air next to the kunai while in mid-air. They weren´t exact replicas; Instead, they were more like two gray blurry objects that vanished as soon as they made contact with the floor. The real kunai landed on the floor as well, making yet another THUD noise. The replicas pretty much disappeared, giving the impression that they passed through the wooden floor.

'I… I did it?'

Visualizing the mental image much more focused this time, Shujinko threw the kunai and quickly went through the exact same hand signs as before. This time, the replicas came out much more detailed and realistic, or at least as realistic as a kunai made out of nothing could be.

"I did it… I did it! Hell yeah, I am awesome!" Shujinko bounced up and down like a kid high on sugar. Screw maturity, screw self-dignity and screw everything else. He did it. He just created his very first jutsu. "I can't wait to show it to Kakashi-sensei! I bet not even he has created a jutsu at my age!"

"Shujinko! What's all that yammering up there? Some of us have to work tomorrow!" Masumi's voice came from downstairs.

"It's nothing, kaa-san! Sorry!" Shujinko apologized, ignoring the fact that he, as a shinobi, also had to work tomorrow. He spared his mother a witty comeback.

Writing the last of the details, Shujinko closed the scroll and put it inside the desk's drawer. He also entered Nanami's room and left her notebook on her night desk right next to her. Luckily, Nanami was a heavy sleeper and didn't wake up at the sound of her brother's excited cries of delightfulness. Kneeling next to his sister, Shujinko planted a soft kiss on her forehead. "Thanks, chibi-chan. You just inspired me to create my first jutsu." he whispered. Nanami merely mumbled some gibberish and went back to sleep.

Now wearing pajamas and lying on his own bed, Shujinko looked up at the ceiling with a grin that could rival Naruto's. Just thinking about his teammate's faces once he tells them about his newest technique was enough to make him snicker in anticipation.

Shujinko felt something special that night. He forgot he was a shinobi, he forgot that he descended from an ancient clan, he forgot that Naruto as the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, he forgot about the Karura Tensei, he forgot about everything.

That night, he was nothing more than an excited twelve year-old kid.

* * *

There you have chapter 14, my fellow readers.

Phew, this one took me quite a while to finish. I've been tremendously busy with a bunch of colleague stuff, so forgive me if I delayed this chapter way too much.

So, that's the Karura Tensei for you all. I came up with the Karura Tensei while I was searching for Japanese mythological creatures for some inspiration. I discovered Karura (an eagle humanoid to make it short. I changed it from an eagle to a hawk for several reasons) and started developing a Kekkei Genkai worth a damn. Some of you might be wondering: Why Senjutsu? Why not something else? The answer for that is simple. If you look at Team 7 during their fight with Madara/Kaguya, you realize just how strong each one is (not including Kakashi). Naruto has the chakra of each one of the Bijuus and is the current reincarnation of Asura, which grants him the power of the Rikkudo Sennin. You also have Sasuke, Indra's reincarnation. He has awoken both the EMS and the Rinnegan. Sakura, although not as powerful as her male teammates, is still a hardass kunoichi, especially with her Byakugo.

Taking that into consideration, what source of power could Shujinko use?

I came up with Senjutsu. You might be thinking I'm looking way too far ahead, but what can I say? I like being ahead of things. Anyways, I assure you Shujinko won't become God-like now that he has the Karura Tensei. The Karura Tensei is a powerful Kekkei Genkai, but Shujinko has barely awoken it, and it will take quite some time before he can use it to its fullest.

Also, I came across a certain coincidence regarding the Karura Tensei. Karura is also the name of Gaara's mother. I hardly think she will ever be mentioned in this story, but I still wanted to let you know.

Boy, these last few chapters have been boring as hell. However, I still think that they were necessary for this story. Next chapter is gonna be a lot more entertaining, though. Brace yourselves, the Chunin Exams are coming. Apart from all of that, I wanted to know how you feel about the way I portrayed Tenten in this chapter. She's a tough character to write, mainly because the show doesn't give her a whole lot of attention.

Until next chapter.

Ja ne!


	15. Chapter 15

**CHAPTER 15: THE FOREIGNERS FROM SUNA**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

|Konohagakure no Sato, 12:00 A.M.|

Shujinko was currently making his way to the meeting point where Team 7 was supposed to wait for its sensei in order to start the list of D-rank missions they were supposed to do. The meeting point was a small, red bridge used mainly by merchants who wanted to cross the river. It was a clear and sunny day with no clouds whatsoever, just the way he liked it. 'Shikamaru must be disappointed.' he chuckled to himself.

Two months have passed since the announcement of Konoha's newest clan: The Ozuma clan. Things were certainly different for Shujinko and his family now that they were recognized as a legitimate shinobi clan, and the golden-eyed youth was caught right in the middle of it. For starters, he was now the only wielder of a unique Kekkei Genkai. Sasuke didn't count because of Kakashi's Sharingan, and Nanami's Karura Tensei was still dormant.

Speaking of which, Nanami digested the news of being a descendant from a shinobi clan rather well. Of course, she was given the abridged version of the family history, leaving aside little bits of information here and there. After all, she was only seven. There was no need for her to know the darkness behind the Ozuma clan just now. Shujinko approved of this and decided to tell her himself if needed be, once the time was right.

The village, however, was both surprised and delighted to have a new shinobi clan and Kekkei Genkai to boost about. Shujinko became somewhat of a celebrity, and seemed to share the same cruel fate of his childhood rival...

Fangirls.

Shujinko shivered a bit. Ever since his family's new status, girls around his age suddenly became almost infatuated by him. Back at the Academy, girls would occasionally gossip about Shujinko's good looks, and he didn't mind that. After all, it was never a bad thing to know that you were attractive to the opposite sex, even though that was not his priority by a long shot. But now, everything was out of control. Girls approached him at least five or six times a day and asked him if he wanted to go out with any of them. Shujinko tried his best to politely decline their offers, stating that he was not looking for a relationship right now. Apparently, fangirls didn't know how to take no for an answer, because they tried even harder to get him to say yes by constantly stalking him and interrupting whatever he was doing. He couldn't even eat his sushi without being on edge, fearing that the fangirls would discover his favorite eating place. He even went as far as changing his usual training spot in order to maintain his privacy. 'Is this what Sasuke has to go through every day? It's no wonder why he's always in a bad mood. These girls are insufferable!' Shujinko couldn't help but think.

Team 7's reaction, however, was a whole different story. The Hokage informed Kakashi about Shujinko's Kekkei Genkai and clan history, and the Jounin was fairly surprised by the sudden development. The fact that his student was part of a once great and important clan from Sora no Kuni was interesting enough, but to have a student with a Kekkei Genkai that relied on the use of Senjutsu was plain fascinating. Kakashi was no stranger to Senjutsu, even though he was never able to attempt learning it due to the fact that he never had the necessary amount of chakra. His sensei and his sensei's sensei both learned Senjutsu from the toads of Mount Myoboku, although Minato once revealed to him that he was merely adept when it came to the Sage Arts and that Jiraiya was never able to obtain full mastery over his Sage Mode. And now, Kakashi found himself with a student who, with proper guidement, could eventually become a strong Senjutsu user. Well, he already had the 'last Uchiha' and the Kyuubi Jinchuriki as pupils, so why not add a Sage into the mix?

Even though he made sure not to show it, Sasuke was intrigued by the news. He never would've thought that Shujinko came from a shinobi clan or that he possessed an almost extinct Kekkei Genkai like the Sharingan. He knew for a fact that the Sharingan allowed him to recognize people's chakra, and looking back at their fight with Haku, he recalled seeing a strange, almost inhuman kind of chakra flowing through Shujinko's chakra system. He had seen chakra manifest itself in a physical form before, and the chakra he saw inside of the Ozuma was a mystery that begged for an explanation. Wanting to confirm his suspicions first, he spent several days activating and deactivating his Sharingan at will. Once he had a good grasp on his family's Dojutsu, Sasuke was forced to swallow his pride and actually spy on people with the use of his Sharingan so he could get used to the feeling of anticipating an individual's movements. The Sharingan was meant to be used on other people, so practicing all by himself wouldn't do him much good. After subtly testing his newly acquired Kekkei Genkai on several ninjas, the Uchiha came to the conclusion that Shujinko's foreign chakra was something uncommon. And he was proven right when Kakashi informed Team 7 of Shujinko's clan history.

The whole situation was almost poetic. Both rivals had awoken their respective clan's power in the middle of a grand battle against a common enemy. He and Shujinko were getting stronger... and as much as he hated to acknowledge it, so was Naruto. He never knew how the dobe managed to defeat Haku, and when he asked Shujinko about it, he said that he was temporary unconscious back then and that he knew just as much as him. Since Kakashi had been busy dealing with Zabuza and Sakura was protecting Tazuna, the only possible outcome was that, somehow, Naruto was able to overpower Haku and break his ice walls. True, he had to 'sacrifice' his life in order to save Naruto's, but that didn't change the fact that the dead-last of the Academy was able to do something he couldn't. Of course, he never asked Naruto what he did to best Haku. His pride was still somewhat sore after his defeat despite awakening his Sharingan, and as an Uchiha, he had a reputation to maintain.

Naruto's reaction was completely different. He couldn't help but feel a little jealous at his teammate. Not because he had a Kekkei Genkai, but because he was now aware that Shujinko came from a supposedly respected and well-known shinobi clan (Kakashi obviously didn't tell his students that the Ozuma clan used to be seen as a snotty and arrogant bunch). He always wondered who his parents were, and sometimes he entertained himself with the idea of belonging to a famous and powerful clan. He also noticed how popular Shujinko became all of the sudden, which only served to increase his envy. Still, Shujinko didn't become arrogant, nor did he acquire a holier-than-thou attitude, so eventually the Kyuubi Jinchuriki's resentment towards his brown-haired teammate faded away.

As for Sakura, the news about her teammate didn't strike her as hard as the others. Sure, she was surprised and all, but she was more interested in how different things were for him now that his family had a new status. She came from a civilian background as well, so she could only imagine his surprise.

His training with the Karura Tensei was fruitful, to say the least. Thanks to the scrolls that his father gave him, Shujinko was able to learn a lot about the Ozuma's Kekkei Genkai, as well as control it. Of course, such achievements also came with a sacrifice. The golden-eyed boy started seeing his family less and less due to his missions, his training with his team and his own training with the Karura Tensei. He knew that ignoring his family wouldn't do him any good, but he couldn't help it. He had so many things to try out with the Karura Tensei, like how fast he could go, how strong his Fuuton Ninjutsu was while the Hawk Sage Mode was active, all of that and more.

As he arrived to the bridge that was Team 7's meeting point, he spotted Sakura and Sasuke. Shujinko smiled at the sight of his female teammate. Ever since they started doing missions again, Sakura became the medic of the group thanks to Shujinko's brief encouragement.

 _|Flashback 2 months ago|_

 _"Very well, my little ducklings. I think we can call it a day." Kakashi announced as they walked out of the Hokage Tower after completing several D-rank tasks. "We have a training session tomorrow. Same time, same place."_

 _Naruto pumped his fists in excitement. "Alright! So what's the training session about, Kakashi-sensei? Are you gonna teach us some super cool jutsu?"_

 _"Actually, I was thinking among the lines of some teamwork exercises." the Hatake responded._

 _"Teamwork exercises?" Naruto repeated incredulously. "What for? Our teamwork is already kickass!"_

 _"Whether that's true or not, teamwork exercises are not meant just for your performance during a mission. It's about bonding with your teammates and discovering your own flaws."_

 _The Kyuubi Jinchuriki scoffed at that. "My own flaws? What are you talking about? I'm gonna be Hokage one day! Tell me, what flaw could I possibly have?"_

 _Kakashi shrugged. "For starters, your Taijutsu is still sloppy and uncoordinated. Your chakra control still needs some work. Oh, and your brash behavior is something we definitely need to work on."_

 _"Hey! My behavior is not brash or whatever! I take offense on what you just said, Kakashi-sensei!"_

 _Shujinko snickered. "Come on, Naruto. You have to admit that you can occasionally be pretty dense. Seriously, who shouts 'super sneaky Uzumaki attack' before an attack?" he asked rhetorically, remembering his last team training session._

 _"That happened only once!" Naruto growled at the betrayal. "Why are you siding with Kakashi-sensei, Shujinko? I thought you were my teammate! If anything, you're the one who has some work to do in the teamwork department!"_

 _"Your enormous idiocy will get us all killed one of these days, dobe." Sasuke remarked out of the blue._

 _"Oh yeah? Well no one asked for your opinion, teme!"_

 _"Sasuke-kun is right, baka!" Sakura quipped. "And besides, you should really take off that ridiculous jumpsuit. It's an eyesore for everyone!"_

 _Naruto started crying anime tears while a darkish aura surrounded him. "Everyone's against me..." he kept mumbling._

 _But before his blond student suffered any further bullying, Kakashi interrupted them. "As I was saying, we have training tomorrow at 11:00 A.M. You can all go now. Ja ne!" and with one hand sign, the silver-haired Jounin poofed out of existence._

 _The sound of a growling stomach made Shujinko, Sasuke and Sakura look back at Naruto, who was sheepishly rubbing his belly with an apologetic grin. "Oh man, I am starving! I seriously need some ramen from Ichiraku's."_

 _Shujinko rolled his eyes at that. 'Why am I not surprised?'_

 _"Well, I'll see ya' tomorrow!" Naruto waved them goodbye as he started running away, wanting nothing more than to get his hands on some of his favorite greasy food._

 _Sakura turned around the second Naruto was gone. "Sasuke-kun, would you like to..." she stared to say, but stopped the moment she realized Sasuke was gone as well. She let out a disappointed sigh and started to walk out of the training ground, her emerald eyes staring at the ground all the way through._

 _"Sakura, wait up." Shujinko called. "You're going home now, right? Do you mind if I walk with you?"_

 _The kunoichi looked at her teammate a little surprised, but nodded nonetheless. "Sure, why not?"_

 _|Back at the village center|_

 _The two members of Team 7 were currently walking through the streets of Konoha, talking about whatever they had in mind. Sakura couldn't help but notice the dreamy stares that Shujinko received from many the females around their age range, which made her feel a little jealous if she had to be honest with herself. It didn't stop there, though. She also heard a number of whispers coming from a couple of villagers, things like 'the heir of the Ozuma clan', 'the last wielder of an ancient Kekkei Genkai', etc. Some of the villagers even went as far as approaching Shujinko and calling him Ozuma-sama, to which Shujinko replied with a stiff nod of acknowledgement. It was no wonder, either. Word of the Ozuma clan traveled fast, and the pink-haired kunoichi wondered if her family would be treated with the same respect should they ever become a shinobi clan._

 _"Sakura, can I ask you something?"_

 _"Go ahead."_

 _"Have you ever wondered in which shinobi field do you want to specialize in?"_

 _The question caught Sakura off-guard. "In which field do I want to specialize in? What do you mean by that?"_

 _"You know, I'm talking about what sort of kunoichi you want to be in the future. I suppose you could say me and Sasuke are like the strategists of the team. We're the ones who think about what to do next and what not. Naruto is definitely a powerhouse with all of that chakra he has. Even though he's not a genius, he can be creative when he wants to and he has enough energy to do whatever he intends to. That's why I'm asking if you had a specific role in mind." Shujinko explained, carefully choosing his words in order to avoid making Sakura feel like she wasn't contributing anything to Team 7._

 _Sakura's mouth twitched as she avoided Shujinko's gaze. It was true. All of Team 7's members had a role except for her. But what was she supposed to do? She was smart, but she wasn't smart the way Sasuke and Shujinko were. She had little to no skill regarding Genjutsu and her Taijutsu was average at best. She supposed she had good chakra control, but she had no techniques were she could use that to her advantage. If that wasn't enough, her chakra reserves were nothing to brag about. So, considering all of that, what could she do to make herself useful? Scratch that, was there anything she could do to make herself useful at all?_

 _Fortunately, Shujinko stopped her negative train of thought. "Have you considered becoming the medic of the team?"_

 _"M-Me? A medic?" the Haruno stammered. "I-I've never really thought about it. But why a medic?"_

 _Shujinko shrugged. "I think you'd do well as a medic if you dedicate yourself. From what I know, Medical Ninjutsu requires very good chakra control. You have the brains and the control level to at least try it out. Who knows? Maybe you can make that your specialty. It'll definitely come in handy to have a medic around."_

 _Sakura's eyes widened at that. Medical Ninjutsu was tough and tedious to learn, but undeniably valuable. Only a few possessed the intelligence and chakra control needed to be a medic. But that didn't mean she couldn't at least try to become one. Maybe she was young, but she was smart and dedicated to her studies when it came down to it. As for her chakra control, while she still had ways to go, it was good. Kakashi himself told her she had the best chakra control out of the four. She would be using her biggest assets to contribute._

 _'Alright, she's considering it. Just one more push...' "And besides," Shujinko started to say. "can you imagine what would happen if, say, Sasuke got hurt during a battle? If he ever receives a wound somewhere around his stomach, he'd have no other choice but to take off his shirt so you can take a look-" the golden-eyed boy's rant was interrupted by a loud squeal. Sakura's face was sporting an interesting shade of red as well as a goofy smile, her emerald eyes shining with glee. Shujinko suppressed a smirk. Who said he had no smooth talking skills? "Sakura, are you alright?" he feigned ignorance, snapping his fingers right in front of the girl's face._

 _Shaking her head, Sakura came back to reality. "Ye-Yeah. I... Uhm, yes, I think I'll give it a try. See you later, Shujinko!" she said before storming off, no wonder to the library so she could start her training on Medical Ninjutsu._

 _The Ozuma smiled in amusement. Just a few words with Sakura and Team 7 was already on its way to get a medic. 'Such a victory is definitely worthy of a reward. How about some sushi?' Shujinko asked himself while taking out his wallet. His smile quickly faded away once he saw just how empty his wallet was. "Right, the new kunai set and the Fuuma Shuriken..."_

 _|End of flashback|_

Since that day, Sakura spent all of her free time either studying Medical Ninjutsu or applying what she learned. She even took part in first-aid lessons back at the Academy. Much to her surprise, she seemed to have a knack for Medical Ninjutsu. Of course she was still a novice who still had a lot to learn, but she certainly showed promise. The decision of Sakura becoming the team's medic was met by nothing but approval. Kakashi congratulated her and even wrote her a list of books that would be of great help. Naruto wouldn't stop screeching about how awesome he thought she was. Sasuke, although he was apparently indifferent towards the news, could see the logic behind her new focus and approved of it. Of course, Sasuke approving of something was equal to saying that he didn't reject it.

The Uchihas had never been a very expressive bunch.

Back to the present, Shujinko waved at his comrades. "Mornin' guys."

Sakura smiled at him. "Good morning, Shujinko."

"Hnh."

"Hnh to you as well, Sasuke. How are you hnhing today?" Shujinko replied with a grin, making Sasuke's eye to twitch in annoyance.

"Hey there, Shujinko and Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted as he approached them from the other side of the bridge. Shujinko smiled and waved hello back at him. Over time, he learned to accept the fact that Naruto was the Kyuubi Jinchuriki. It was hard to keep the whole 'I-am-not-aware-that-the-Kyuubi-is-sealed-inside-of-you' act at first, but eventually he decided that Naruto was Naruto and that the Kyuubi was the Kyuubi. They were two different beings. He still hadn't told him that he knew, as he was still looking for the right moment. Naruto slowed down once he joined his team. His blue eyes narrowed as he acknowledged Sasuke's presence. "Teme." he growled.

Sasuke sneered at him. "Dobe."

Both teens glared at each other harshly before looking away. Shujinko rolled his eyes at the childish behavior displayed by his teammates.

|2 hours later|

"Good morning, my cute little students. Such a beautiful morning we are having today, wouldn't you agree?"

"You're late, sensei!" both Naruto and Sakura shouted while pointing at Kakashi with an accusing finger.

"Mah, mah, let your sensei explain himself. I got lost in the road of life, you see."

Shujinko scoffed at the overly repeated excuse. "You'd think that someone who has gotten himself lost in the road of life as many times as you would avoid getting anywhere near it, sensei. I'm seriously considering to buy you a map of Hi no Kuni so you don't get lost anymore." Don't get him wrong. Shujinko had a great deal of respect for his sensei, but his tardiness was something that annoyed him to no end.

Kakashi shrugged. "That's very thoughtful of you. As much as it hurts me to say, we must cut our chit-chat. Hokage-sama entrusted us with completing several D-ranks today. We all know they won't complete themselves, don't we?"

Four groans were his only response.

* * *

Shujinko sighed as he mentally summarized the events that had occurred so far:

Mission number 1: Fix an old woman's backyard

Although tedious, the mission was fairly simple. An old woman by the name of Kameyo was suffering from back pains, so she hired Team 7 to fix her backyard and weed out all of the rotten herbs that were pestering her garden. Instead of helping out, Kakashi decided to sit on a tree branch and read his beloved Icha-Icha, claiming that he was 'keeping an eye out for evildoers and intruders'. A load of crap if you asked Shujinko.

Everything was going well until Naruto decided to speed things up in an attempt to outdo Sasuke by furiously pulling out everything that was of green color, not really paying attention if what he was pulling out were weeds or not. In the end, all of the weeds were gone... and so were Kameyo's growing herbs.

Naruto took a beating from Kameyo and Team 7's payment was cut in half. This led to Naruto receiving another beating, this time courtesy of his own teammates.

Whether they accomplished their mission or not, Shujinko still wasn't sure and really didn't care much. The mission was over and he was happy for it.

Mission number 2: Pick up the trash out of the river

The mission was pretty self-explanatory: The river was filled with trash, Team 7 had to clean it up. Fortunately, this mission was done a lot faster than expected. Naruto had the bright idea to use shadow clones to pick up more trash in less time. It was all well and good until Naruto dispelled the clones once they finished and accidentally slipped off. The Uchiha managed to catch Naruto moments before reaching the end of the river. Had it not been for Sasuke's quick reaction, the Uzumaki would've fallen down the waterfall.

Sasuke didn't miss the chance to call Naruto a 'hopeless moron'.

Mission number 3: Take a couple of dogs from the Inuzuka clan out for a walk

Shujinko had to admit, he actually enjoyed this mission to a point.

Because most of its members were busy with their shinobi duties, the Inuzuka clan had to hire a team of Genins to take some of their dogs for a walk. Sakura chose a cute, black-furred puppy that was no bigger than Akamaru. Sasuke chose the first one he saw, a medium-sized, white-furred dog. Shujinko chose a medium-sized, white and brown-furred dog named Inumaru. He made sure to scratch his chosen dog behind his ears to earn his affection before putting a leash on him, and Inumaru quickly warmed up to Shujinko.

Naruto being Naruto, he chose the biggest dog he could find. As soon as Team 7 started the mission, it became rather obvious that Naruto had no control over his dog whatsoever. It was like the dog was taking Naruto out for a walk. Things got even worse when they approached a mine field that was supposed to be used by ninjas who wanted to practice their bomb-detecting skills. The dog found a way inside and dragged Naruto with him.

Oddly enough, the dog ended up with no injuries. Naruto, on the other hand, stepped on a bomb every five steps he took.

The rest of the mission was spent treating Naruto's injuries. Kakashi managed to gather all four dogs ('Kakashi-sensei really has a good hand with dogs.', Shujinko noticed) and return them to the Inuzuka compound. This gave Sakura the perfect chance to show her recently acquired medical skills, as well as gain some recognition among his peers, especially Sasuke. Naruto was more than happy to be Sakura's patient, mainly because she was supposed to touch him gently instead of burying her marble-hard fists deep inside his skull.

'Well, at least we only had these three missions today. The only thing we have left to do is go to the Hokage Tower and get our money.' Shujinko thought as he rubbed his belly. His body was BEGGING HIM for an extra-large ration of sushi, and he had every intention of having one.

"I freaking hate D-ranks!" Naruto yelled, very much to his teammate's annoyance. He was still feeling a little weak (having twenty bombs exploding near you did that), so Shujinko and Sasuke had to help him walk despite his constant protests. "When I become Hokage, I swear I'll ban these stupid chores!"

"If you do that, then how are you supposed to replace the village's lack of income?" Shujinko questioned, although he understood the blond all too well. D-rank missions were boring and time-consuming. "The village needs these D-ranks despite how lame they are."

"We could be doing C-rank missions by now if it wasn't for you, dobe." Sasuke threw in his two ryos.

"Watch your mouth, teme!" Naruto barked. "You're talking to the future Hokage! Besides, I bet it's your fault that we're not doing any C-ranks! If only you could keep up with me, then we would be doing A-ranks by now! Believe it!"

Kakashi let out a tired sigh. Naruto's and Sasuke's relationship was no longer the same. Before their first encounter with Zabuza, the two of them would merely trash talk one another. Naruto used to brag about his awesomeness and how he was one of the top ninjas from the village. Sasuke would either ignore his claims or call him an idiot. When they started the tree-walking exercise, Sasuke recognized Naruto's potential to a degree, and thus a friendly rivalry was born. It was a good thing to have a rival, Kakashi knew. Competing against one another was a great way to develop a bond between comrades.

But after their fight with Haku and Zabuza, the friendly rivalry became serious. They taunted each other. That could only mean that Sasuke acknowledged Naruto's prowess, and he felt threatened by it.

"Me, keep up with you?" Sasuke scoffed as he started walking away from the group. "Keep dreaming, dobe. You are nothing but a loser with a big mouth. I'm stronger than you. The sooner you realize that, the sooner you'll stop making an idiot out of yourself. And if you don't like what I'm saying..." he then stopped and turned around to face Naruto with a cold look. "... then prove me wrong."

'They're getting along even worse than before, if that's possible.' Sakura thought in distress.

Shujinko was thinking among the same lines as his female teammate. 'If only fighting actually solved problems. We'd have had this fixed like thirty times over by now.' "Alright, you two. Stop being babies and let's continue our mission, shall we?"

Much to his surprise, Sasuke redirected his glare to him. "You're one to talk. As far as I'm concerned, you're behind me as well. Until you show me that you're stronger than me, keep your thoughts to yourself... second-best."

'Oooooh, you didn't just say that.' Shujinko clenched his fists in anger. 'Second-best' was an insult Sasuke came up with a few years ago. It stated that Shujinko, while he was good, was still not as good as him. Shujinko knew he shouldn't feel angry for such a childish thing, but he couldn't help it. He despised being labeled as the second-best just because people believed Sasuke to be the best shinobi of their generation.

Ah, but Shujinko was a crafty and ingenious young man, so he came up with an insult of his own.

"Whatever you say... duckbutt-chan."

Sasuke stopped dead in his tracks and gave Shujinko an ice-melting glare. Shujinko grinned at his reaction while Naruto burst out laughing. The Kyuubi Jinchuriki fell to the ground, holding his belly with one hand as he wiped his tears with the other. Even Kakashi seemed amused, although it was hard to tell considering the fact that the only uncovered part of his face was his right eye. Sakura looked murderous, but before she could do anything, Kakashi spoke up. "Considering that we have no missions left, how about we call it a day?"

Naruto stopped laughing (although he was still grinning like a Cheshire cat) and took a deep breath. "Fine by me."

"Just make sure you don't get lost on the road of life on your way home, sensei." Shujinko said with a smile.

The Hatake returned his student's smile with an eye-smile of his own. "Don't worry, sensei will be careful. Ja ne!" and with a poof of smoke, the man disappeared.

"Whatever. I'm out of here." Sasuke said as he resumed his walk.

"Sasuke-kun, wait!" Sakura called out as she approached her crush. "How about we go do something more personal? You know... to work on our teamwork and all." she asked while playing with her hands in anticipation.

"No. You are just as annoying as Naruto, if not more." was Sasuke's answer. He was about to call her weak too, but he had to remind himself that she was the medic of the group. As a matter of fact, as far as Medical Ninjutsu goes, Sakura was better (yes, better) than him. Even if he had no interest in learning Medical Ninjutsu, that didn't change the fact that she was better than him at something. Sure, she had a long way to go, but now Sasuke had no right to call her useless.

With nothing left to say, the Uchiha walked away, leaving a very disappointed Sakura behind. Shujinko waved his teammates goodbye and left the scene as well.

Naruto, however, was anything BUT disappointed. 'Now that Sasuke-teme is gone, I can finally have some alone time with Sakura-chan!' he devishly thought. But before he could activate his Uzumaki charms, he noticed there was something behind him. Turning around, he saw a rectangular-shaped rock made out of cardboard. The whiskered boy raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed by the pathetic camouflage attempt and already having an idea of who was the one inside. "That disguise is absolutely stupid, you know? There are no such things as rectangular rocks."

A squeaky voice came out of the 'disguise'. "You recognized our camouflage, huh? I would've expected nothing less from my rival!" and with that, four kids who were around 7-8 years old came out of the box before striking a heroic pose. Three of them were wearing googles. Naruto recognized the 'leader' of the group immediately.

"I am Sarutobi Konohamaru, the number one genius of the village and future Hokage!" Konohamaru said as they started to introduce themselves.

"I am Moegi, the prettiest kunoichi of all Konohagakure!"

"I am Udon, the biggest fan of numbers and mathematics you'll ever see!"

The last one was certainly a surprise...

"And I am Ozuma Nanami, the best kunoichi around!"

...

"Yeah, I could already tell it was you, Konohamaru." Naruto said as he placed his hands behind his head. He then noticed what Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi were wearing on their foreheads. "Hey, what's with those googles?"

Konohamaru let out a toothy grin. "You used to wear one of these, right? We're copying you, boss!" his gaze met Nanami's. "Nanami doesn't like them, though. She says her brother thinks they're stupid and that ninjas shouldn't wear them. She doesn't know what she's talking about. Right, boss?"

"Oni-chan says googles are ugly, and he's the best ninja of his class." Nanami replied stubbornly while crossing her arms. She met the Konohamaru Corps roughly about two months ago and became a member of the group. Shujinko had been so busy with his missions and his training that Nanami decided to spend time with other people. Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi were classmates of her, and once she approached them, she quickly befriended them. That didn't meant, however, that she would wear googles, or anything that her or Shujinko classified as 'unbefitting for a shinobi', like an orange jumpsuit for example.

"That's not true!" Konohamaru argued. "Naruto-nii-chan is the best ninja there is! Oh, that reminds me of something. Naruto-nii-chan, can we go play ninja now? You promised we would!"

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Oh wow, are you sure I said that?"

"Why would a ninja play ninja?" Sakura grumbled, looking heartbroken after Sasuke's rejection.

"Huh? Hey boss, who's that girl?" Konohamaru asked with a confused look. After a minute or so, Konohamaru's brilliant deductive skills kicked in. "Ohhh, I see how it is." he said with a sly smirk. "You're really smooth, boss. You never told me you had a girlfriend."

Sakura's eye twitched as she cracked her knuckles.

"Girlfriend?" Naruto repeated as he blushed a little. "Well, she's really crazy about me. That I can tell you."

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH, YOU LITTLE TWERP!" Sakura shouted as she punched Naruto across his face, sending the blond flying a good ten meters away.

"NARUTO-NII-CHAN!" Konohamaru screamed as he and his friends quickly approached the whiskered boy's unconscious body. "What kind of girlfriend are you!?" he demanded. "No, you're not Naruto-nii-chan's girlfriend! You're a witch! An ugly witch with a big forehead!"

And with that, the little boy signed his own death warrant. With a psychotic smile, Sakura stared at Konohamaru before running towards him, fully intending to pound the little brat into a pulp. The Sarutobi's defiant expression quickly turned into a terrified one as he ran away from the 'witch with a big forehead'. He was running so fast he didn't realize there was a person coming his way. Not until he bumped into him, at least.

Konohamaru struggled to get up. When he did so, he looked over at the individual he ran into. He was a boy around fifteen years of age. He wore a black body suit with a red and yellow circle on the front. He also wore a black hood which covered his head completely, and had cat-like ears and his forehead protector on his forehead. He also had a triangular face-paint design of purple color. There was something hanging from his back that was covered in bandages, but Konohamaru had no way to tell what it was. Behind the boy, there was a girl. The girl appeared to be slightly older than the boy, but not by much. She wore a single light purple-colored, off-the-shoulders garment that extended to halfway down her thighs, with a scarlet sash tied around her waist. Her sandy blonde hair was done in four consecutives pigtails.

"That hurt... brat." The older boy said, looking between annoyed and amused. Then, much to everyone's shock, he grabbed Konohamaru by his blue scarf and held him high. "You should really look where you're going. People don't like midgets who bump into them... specially me."

"Kankuro, put him down. We're not supposed to cause trouble here." the girl behind him scolded, although she did nothing to stop him.

"Lay off. We have a couple of minutes before he shows up. Why not have some fun until then?" Kankuro replied while tightening his grip.

Sakura swallowed hard. "Hey, there's no need to get so violent. He's just a kid and it was an acci-"

"Let him go right now, you idiot!" Naruto growled, clenching his fists in anger.

"Yeah, Naru-chan is right! Let Kono-chan go right now!" Nanami shouted while taking a step forward, earning herself incredulous looks from both the strangers and her friends.

Kankuro chuckled. "Or what? What are you gonna do?"

Nanami growled (which was kind of funny considering she was a little kid) and ran towards Kankuro. Before she could reach him, Kankuro raised his left hand and grabbed Nanami as well.

Naruto was seething in anger now. He may not know Nanami all that well, but he knew just how important she was to Shujinko. There were few things Naruto simply couldn't tolerate, and bullying was one of them. "Let both of them go, you bastard!"

"You talk like you can do something about it." Kankuro kept on taunting. "All of you are annoying. I don't like annoying people, much less when they're scrawny little brats. Do you want to know what I do to them? I-" TUCK "Arrrghh!"

Kankuro felt a shot of pain and unconsciously dropped the two kids, who hurriedly stepped back to Naruto and Sakura. The Suna boy placed his hand near the right corner of his mouth, his tongue tasting a little blood. Everyone looked around in awe, trying to make sense of what they just witnessed. Finally, they saw someone standing on top of a tree branch nearby.

It was Shujinko, who was holding a couple of rocks with his right hand and glaring daggers at Kankuro. "You better have a good reason for hurting my little sister, and trust me, there aren't."

"Shujinko!" Sakura exclaimed, feeling partially relieved.

Nanami stared at his brother, her eyes replaced by shiny stars of admiration. "Oni-chan!"

Kankuro growled at him. "You're gonna get it now, you little punk. I hope you've said your goodbyes."

"A make-up wearing clown from Suna is threatening me? Well, this is definitely interesting." Shujinko retorted.

Temari stifled a giggle as she eyed the brown-haired boy. After a minute, she acknowledged his good looks and his 'cool and collected' attitude. 'He's kind of cute.' she thought as her cheeks gained a tinge of pink.

Her brother wasn't exactly thinking among the same line as her if his facial expression was anything to go by. "Why you little-"

TUCK

Another rock was thrown, and Kankuro found himself furiously rubbing the back of his head in an attempt to get rid of the pain. "You two are a long way from home. What do you think you're doing in our village?" a voice called from the opposite side.

Who else but Sasuke?

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura squealed.

Temari blushed once more. 'I gotta hand it to you, Konoha. You have your fair share of local hotties.'

"Oh great, another rock-throwing wimp." Kankuro sneered.

Sasuke responded by crushing the small rock he was still holding. "Get lost."

"Rock-throwing wimps?" Shujinko chuckled before jumping out of the branch he was standing on and landing on the ground. "Careful there, or you might get a third one coming your way."

Kankuro snarled, having fed up with everything. "I've had it with these two!" he shouted as he reached for the human-shaped object that was covered in bandages. Sasuke tensed slightly as he carefully reached his kunai holster. He saw Shujinko slowly reaching for a sealing scroll where he kept his Fuuma Shuriken.

Temari's eyes widened. "You're planning on using Karasu!?" she asked in shock.

"So what if I am?" Kankuro asked back.

"Kankuro, stop it."

Sasuke nearly fell from the branch he was sitting on when he heard a voice right next to him. He looked to his right and saw a boy no older than him staring at Kankuro with a blank look. He had red hair and pale skin. He had the kanji for 'love' carved on the left side of his forehead as well. He had tanuki-like black rings around his eyes and no eyebrows whatsoever. He used two buckled belts to carry a gourd. Whoever he was, he was definitely creepy. 'How did he get here? I didn't felt his presence until he talked. Who is this guy?'

Shujinko was also feeling uneasy. Judging by his age, the boy was most likely a Genin. He had never seen a Genin who could move as quietly as him. 'His stealth is right on par with Kakashi-sensei. Just who is this guy?'

What was even stranger, both Temari and Kankuro were shifting nervously, almost with fear. "G-Gaara, I-I had no idea you were he-here." Kankuro stuttered.

"You are an embarrassment to our village."

"I-I can explain myself! These two punks were getting on my nerves and I-"

"If you say one more word, I'll kill you."

Shujinko flinched at the monotony of Gaara's voice. Seriously, how can you say something like that in such a careless tone? And why would he say something like that? Wasn't that a little too much? Sure, the guy was being a grade-A prick, but he didn't deserve to die.

Meanwhile, Gaara observed the two individuals that faced Kankuro. 'They were able to catch him off-guard and assaulted him using nothing but small rocks. Those two might be worthy.' he thought. "I apologize for the actions of my brother." Raising two fingers, he vanished from his spot and appeared next to his siblings using the Suna Shunshin no Jutsu. "Come. We are not here to play games."

"Wait a minute!" Sakura shouted at them. "Looking at your headbands, I can tell you're from Sunagakure no Sato. While Hi no Kuni and Kaze no Kuni are allies, no shinobi is allowed to just walk into another village without permission. State your business and-"

"Wow, you guys must be living under a rock or something." Temari interrupted rather harshly. She then pulled her passport out of her back pouch and gave the pink-haired kunoichi a cocky smirk. "Here are our passports. We are Genins from Sunagakure and we were given permission to participate in the Chunin Exams that are being held here. Do you get the picture now?"

"Chunin Exams? The heck is that?" Naruto asked.

Shujinko facepalmed. Honestly, wasn't the name 'Chunin Exams' self-explanatory enough? You had the Genin Exams, the exams that allowed an Academy student to obtain the rank of Genin. The Chunin Exams were pretty much the same thing, although Shujinko supposed they were way harder than the Genin Exams. Considering that ninjas from all of the shinobi villages were attending, it had to be a big deal.

"Boss, those are the exams that every Genin has to take if he wants to become Chunin." Konohamaru explained.

Naruto's confused face instantly turned into an excited one. A chance to become Chunin and get closer to becoming Hokage? Hell yeah! "Alright, then I'm taking those exams! Count me in!"

The Sand Siblings payed him no attention as they started walking. But Sasuke wasn't done yet. He needed to know the name of the red-haired guy. "Stop there. What is your name?"

Temari turned around with a hopeful face. "Me?"

"No. I want the name of the one with the gourd on his back."

Now Gaara turned around. "My name is Sabaku no Gaara. What is your name?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

Gaara looked at Shujinko. "You?"

"Ozuma Shujinko."

"Hey, what about me? Don't you wanna know my name?" Naruto asked hopefully. "Oh, what am I saying? Of course you wanna know! My name is-"

"I couldn't care less about your name. Temari, Kankuro, let's go."

Once they were gone, Shujinko and Sasuke looked at each other and shared a small smirk. The Chunin Exams were coming, and they were more than ready to participate. They could feel each other's excitement and, without uttering a single word, they agreed on something: They needed to be at the top of their skills, and there was one way to do that. It was sparring time. None of them had a sparr in quite a long time due to their respective training. Sasuke wanted to make sure he could properly use his Sharingan before using it in battle and Shujinko was still experimenting with the Karura Tensei. It was time to see the results of their training.

"... Hey, Konohamaru. You know I'm just as cool as Shujinko and Sasuke-teme, right?" Naruto asked in a low tone.

"Compared to those two? Nope."

* * *

Next stop: The first part of the Chunin Exams

Review, Like and Follow. I'm always open to suggestions.

Ja ne!


	16. Chapter 16

**CHAPTER 16: A CERTAIN SPANDEX-WEARING CREEP**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

Our favorite golden-eyed shinobi raised his left hand, deflecting Sasuke's incoming fist while throwing a punch to his face. The Uchiha ducked down just in time and performed a horse kick to push Shujinko back a few meters and gain some distance. Shujinko was able to cross his arms and block the kick, but he was still pushed back by the force behind the attack. Taking advantage of the situation, Sasuke charged against his rival in hopes of dismantling his defense, but the Ozuma charged as well and jumped over him before he could reach him.

While in mid-air, Shujinko pulled out three shurikens and threw them. Sasuke reached for a kunai and, with the help of his Sharingan, calculated the trajectory of each and every one of the throwing stars before swatting them away with little effort. Shujinko was still descending from his jump when the raven-haired boy started weaving handsigns. "Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted before sending several fire blasts out of his mouth towards the Ozuma. The brown-haired boy was forced to jump left and right in order to avoid getting hit by the fire blasts.

'Sasuke has been upgrading his arsenal.' Shujinko noticed as he started weaving some hand signs of his own. 'But so have I.' "Fuuton: Daifuuburo no Jutsu!" Shujinko inhaled deeply before letting out a strong gust of wind from his mouth, catching Sasuke off-guard for the time being and sending him away. The Uchiha landed on his knees and quickly got up, albeit a bit shakily, just in time to see five kunais going his way.

He mentally smirked. He already knew about Shujinko's self-developed kunai jutsu. While the jutsu itself was somewhat ingenious, it lost all of its purpose when used against a Sharingan user who could easily tell the difference between the real one and the replicas. It took him one quick glance to identify the real one and all he did was to step aside, allowing the kunai to pass through. The rest of the kunais vanished.

Shujinko discovered that fighting against the Sharingan was both hard and annoying. Sasuke was able to anticipate his every move, making it very difficult for the Ozuma to land a hit. If that wasn't enough, Sasuke could keep his Sharingan activated for a good amount of time since it required little chakra to do so.

Sasuke also found himself struggling against the Karura Tensei. With the use of his Sharingan, Sasuke was able to predict Shujinko's moves and techniques, but there was one thing that kept him from winning. Even if he knew what Shujinko was going to do, it was still difficult to reach him. From what he could tell, the Karura Tensei granted Shujinko very good reflexes and improved his physical abilities. Sasuke avoided getting hit by seeing into the future, Shujinko avoided getting hit by relying on his superior power of response.

Both rivals stared at each other for a while before Shujinko spoke up. "We should stop now. We have to be at the Academy in about half an hour."

"You're not afraid of losing, are you?"

"No, more like I'm afraid of accidentally knocking you out and have you miss the Chunin Exams."

Sasuke snorted. "You're as delusional as Naruto."

Shujinko rolled his eyes at the display of arrogance. "Whatever you say. Let's just go."

* * *

|Academy|

As accorded, the members of Team 7 gathered outside the Academy before entering. Naruto and Sakura were already there waiting for Sasuke and Shujinko. The Kyuubi Jinchuriki was barely able to contain himself from bouncing all over the place in excitement. Sakura, although not nearly as evident as her whiskered teammate, also had a look of determination. She had studied and practiced so much over the last two months that she finally felt like an official member of Team 7. She was the one in charge of keeping the boys going.

"Alright, guys. Let's show these guys what Team 7 is about." Shujinko said as he held the back of his palm up in the air. What could he say? He was feeling pumped up and he wanted his teammates to feel the same, even if he had to resort to cheesy 'team moments' thingies.

Naruto was the first to get the message. He let out a foxy grin before placing his hand on top of Shujinko's. "Yeah! Let's go kick some ninja butt!"

Sakura swallowed, but still managed to place her hand on top of Naruto's with a small smile. "Hai."

Everyone was now looking at Sasuke expectantly. The Uchiha twitched his eyes in annoyance and Shujinko thought he was going to ignore them. Much to his surprise, Sasuke relented and slowly placed his hand on top of Sakura's (very much to the girl's delight). He still refused to look at any of his teammates, but that was ok. That was what they expected of him. That was the Sasuke they knew.

Shujinko took the time to apreciate the moment he was experiencing. It was funny how, before he graduated, he had rarely spoken with any of his current teammates (except for Sasuke, but Sasuke rarely talked about anything). They used to be little more than acquaintances, individuals whom he barely knew. Now they were his friends. Sakura? That overly-loud know-it-all? She was his friend. Naruto? That overly-loud idiot? He was his friend. Sasuke? That overly-quiet arrogant bastard? He was his friend. Kakashi? That lazy pervert?... Well, calling him a friend would be weird, but for some reason, Shujinko couldn't imagine Team 7 without him.

Of course, Sasuke had to be an insensitive party pooper and retrieved his hand first. "Let's go. We look even more stupid than Naruto here outside."

Ignoring Naruto's protests and insults, the members of Team 7 entered the Academy. Shujinko had to admit, going back to the Academy brought him more than one memory from his childhood. He remembered how he used to play ninja with paper shurikens and all of the pranks Naruto pulled on their teachers. Ah, the nostalgia was real.

Everything was so simple back then. As long as you had good grades and friends to play, you were good to go. He couldn't help but realize Naruto never had either of those back when they were kids. Naruto was an orphan from birth, so he never knew parental encouragement nor did he had an adult to help him avoid making the same mistakes all over again. He grew up alone, hated for something he had no choice or knowledge of.

'I never knew you were so lonely, Naruto. Had I known...' Shujinko shook his head. There was no point in thinking about the past when he couldn't change it. But the present and the future? That he could change.

As soon as he reached the floor where they were supposed to reach, Shujinko felt there was something strange going on. All participants had to go to the third floor in order to hand out their applications. There was a crowd in the floor's corridor, so he supposed they were in the right place. Even so, he was pretty sure he and his teammates had only gone up two levels instead of three. This was supposed to be corridor 201, not 301. He spotted Sasuke subtly activating his Sharingan while looking at the floor sign. 'Could it be that...'

Well, there was one way to find out.

Shujinko took a deep breath and carefully activated his Kekkei Genkai as well. He discovered that the faster he activated the Karura Tensei, the less it lasted. He was still working on the duration of his Sage Mode. Fully charged, The Karura Tensei lasted for about 30 minutes before wearing off. If he instantly activated his Kekkei Genkai, however, the effects would last around 8 to 12 minutes depending on how much Nature Chakra he used.

While experimenting with the Karura Tensei, Shujinko was hit by a wild, yet plausible idea. With the use of the Karura Tensei, Shujinko believed that he could be able to dispel Genjutsu to some degree. It wasn't one of the Karura Tensei's abilities, but the result of theory applied to real life. One of the ways to get out of a Genjutsu was to have someone else disturb the flow of your chakra with his own. From what he studied from the Ozuma scrolls, his body was genetically able to draw energy out of nature and mix it with his own reserves, creating Nature Chakra. If his theory was right, this Nature Chakra that was gathered from an external source could 'disrupt' his chakra flow.

And he was right. Well, at least somewhat right. When he looked up, he saw the floor sign slowly changing its shape, confirming his suspicions. The Ozuma and the Uchiha shared a brief look. There was someone casting a Genjutsu around, but who? And more important, why? What was the point?

They came just in time to see a fifteen year-old guy punching a Genin right in the face, making him land on his back. The aggressor had dark, spiky hair and had some Band-Aids on his face. Next to him was another guy with brown hair and a bandana-like headband. The boy who was just assaulted was...

... a real piece of work. Shujinko had never seen before someone who could rival Naruto when it came to having bad fashion taste, but the boy in front of him was definitely a contender. He wore a horrendous green jumpsuit that was made out of spandex. He also wore orange leg warmers and had his hands and forearms wrapped in bandages. He wore his red headband as a belt. To make things worse, he had his black shinny hair in a bowl-cut and the biggest eyebrows he had ever seen in his entire life.

"What a joke. You want to become Chunin yet you can't even pass through us?" the older boy taunted.

"Please, let us through. We have to go in there." a girl pleaded as she helped her teammate to get up.

Shujinko blinked at the sound of the female voice he just heard. It sounded... familiar, somehow. Passing through the crowd of people, Shujinko approached the spandex-wearing boy and instantly recognized the girl next to him. It was Tenten, the girl of the weapon shop from whom he bought his Fuuma Shuriken and kunai set. 'I never thought I'd see her here. Well, life is full of coincidences, I guess.'

Tenten tried to go through the door, but she was slapped by the brown-haired Chunin that was blocking it. The Ozuma found himself frowning in disapproval and slight anger. Even though he didn't saw kunoichis and the female sex in general as weak individuals, he still felt that hitting a girl was wrong. And the guy who slapped Tenten had no good reason to do it, which made him even angrier.

"That's harsh!" one guy from the crowd said out loud.

The spiky-haired Chunin chuckled. "Harsh, you said? In that case, all of you should follow our advice and go back to your homes. This is nothing compared to the Chunin Exams."

"That's right." his companion said. "People suffer, go crazy and even die during these exams. Every one of you will be forced to make life-or-death decisions. This is not a place for weaklings, so why don't you go home and play with your dolls, little girl?"

"Real nice speech. Now step aside and let me and my team go through." Sasuke said as he approached the two Chunins. "And dispel your pathetic Genjutsu while you're at it. We're going to the third floor."

The gathered crowd started whispering among themselves. Things like 'Third floor?' and 'What is he talking about?' were heard loud and clear. Shujinko sighed as he raised two fingers. "Kai." he commanded, and the sign that once said 301 was now 201.

The two Chunins smirked in unison. "So, you two managed to detect our Genjutsu. Not bad. Now let's see if you can step it up!" the boy with spiky hair shouted before attempting to kick Sasuke, who managed to respond with a kick of his own. However, the two kicks were stopped. In an impressive display of speed and strength, the Genin with thick eyebrows placed himself between the Uchiha and the Chunin and grabbed both their ankles, effectively stopping them from hurting each other.

Shujinko was honestly amazed by that guy's speed. He moved so fast that he actually reminded him of Haku, and that was saying something. 'He stopped both their attacks in a blink of an eye. But he was punched by that same Chunin not too long ago. Was he trying to lay low or something?'

'He stopped my kick. That's some serious chakra he has in his arm.' the raven-haired boy thought, doing his best to keep a neutral facial expression. 'The bruises on his face are gone as well. Were they fake?'

"Lee, what do you think you are doing?" said another Genin as he approached the now-identified Lee. The boy had long, dark brown hair that was tied in a loose ponytail a few inches above the end. He wore a khaki shirt and dark brown shorts. His right arm and leg were covered in bandages. His eyes made it all too clear that he was of the Hyuuga clan. "We agreed to keep a low profile and hide our real strength, don't you remember?"

"I know that, but..." Lee struggled to find an answer.

Tenten shook her head in surrender. "Never mind, it's over. Just forget it."

Lee then walked over to Sakura and stood right in front of her. "My name is Rock Lee. Your name is Haruno Sakura, correct?"

"Yeah..." Sakura answered, feeling terribly awkward.

"Sakura-san, please be my girlfriend! I swear to protect you with my life!" Lee said while giving the girl a thumbs-up and a sparkling smile.

Sakura sweat-dropped. "... Absolutely no."

"B-But why!?" Lee asked, looking absolutely crestfallen and miserable.

"... Because you're a complete weirdo..."

Meanwhile, the Hyuuga approached Shujinko and Sasuke. "You two, over here. What are your names?" he asked/demanded.

Shujinko raised an eyebrow. "You know, it's a very common courtesy to give your own name before asking someone else's."

"You two are rookies." the Hyuuga stated. "How old are you two?"

"We're not obliged to give you an answer." Sasuke replied, hands inside his pockets.

"What was that?" the boy glared indignantly at Sasuke, who simply turned around and left them to rejoin Naruto and Sakura.

Tenten giggled. 'Cute.' she thought as she watched the raven-haired boy leave. Her eyes trailed off to the other boy, who was still there, looking amused by his comrade's attitude. He seemed familiar. She was sure she had seen boy somewhere, although it was hard for her to say. She saw several faces almost every day when she worked at her father's store, so she couldn't really blame herself. There was something about his face that stood out. Those eyes, those golden eyes... "Shujinko, is that you?" she asked with precaution, not wanting to make a fool out of herself.

To her relief, she didn't. Shujinko looked at her and smiled. "Tenten, it's nice to see you."

"You're taking the Chunin Exams?" Tenten asked in slight disbelief. She heard from his teammates that there were a couple of rookies entering the Chunin Exams, a bold decision if you asked her. Sure, her team was only a year older, but they were experienced enough. They had Neji, the young prodigy of the Hyuuga clan and the ex 'Rookie of the Year'. They had Lee, whose Taijutsu had vastly improved over time. Last, but certainly not least, they had her, a strong and smart kunoichi who was able to use any weapon with proficiency. "Don't you think it's a little too early for you to be here?"

The golden-eyed boy shrugged. "What can I say? I have a pretty good team and Kakashi-sensei thinks we're ready."

"Tenten, how do you know him?" Neji asked, his gaze not leaving Shujinko's.

"I met him at tou-san's weapons store about two months ago. His name is Ozuma Shujinko."

"Well, now that you know my name, why don't you tell me yours?" Shujinko asked the Hyuuga.

"Hyuuga Neji." Neji replied. 'So this is the Genin from the new clan everyone is talking about. It will be interesting to see how he fares in these exams.' he thought to himself, wondering what sort of fate was waiting for him as one of the only remaining survivors of an ancient clan. Was he a prodigy like him? Was he a failure? Only time would tell.

Shujinko nodded in acknowledgement. "I see. Well, I hope you can make it through. Good luck." and with that said, the brown-haired boy turned around and reached for the exit, where his team was waiting for him.

"Those two are pretty bold." Tenten commented once Team 7 was out of sight. "Are you planning on challenging them?"

Neji merely let out an uncompromised 'hnh' and started walking. Tenten shook her head in amusement as she followed him, knowing full well that her teammate was somewhat interested in both the Ozuma and the Uchiha. She then noticed that her other teammate was not walking at all. "Come on, Lee. We have to check-in before it's too late."

"I will catch up with you in a minute. There is something I want to investigate first. Please, do not wait for me." Lee said before going the other way.

The bun-haired girl sighed. "What is Lee up to now?"

"I have no idea."

* * *

"Shujinko, what were you doing back there? Did you know those guys?" Sakura asked.

"Not really. I met Tenten about two months ago when I bought some equipment from her store." Shujinko replied as they walked towards the outdoors of the Academy.

"What do you know of her teammates?" Sasuke asked, hoping to find some information that could be useful. He cared little for the name of that girl, but the Hyuuga and the spandex-wearing nutcase had him somewhat intrigued. His guts were telling him to keep an eye out for those two.

"Sasuke, I met her once while shopping. I barely know her name. I don't know anything about her teammates other than their names, Rock Lee and Hyuuga Neji."

Team 7 was about to leave, but a booming voice coming from the higher floor stopped them. "Halt! You two with the cool attitudes. Wait there!" Everyone turned around to see who was speaking. It was Rock Lee, the weird guy from before.

Kakashi's students had multiple reactions. Shujinko raised an eyebrow. Naruto stared at Lee with a confused look. Sakura cringed and took a step back. Sasuke grunted. "What do you want?" he demanded.

"My wish is to fight you and your teammate. Right here, right now."

"You want to fight me here and now, huh?" Sasuke repeated as if he just heard a lame joke.

"I do." Lee said before jumping over the balcony. "My name is Rock Lee. Just like your teammate said, it is a very common courtesy to give your own name before challenging another person... Uchiha Sasuke-kun."

The eyes of the raven-haired boy widened slightly. "So you do know me."

"I challenge you and Ozuma Shujinko-kun to a fair fight." Lee proclaimed while moving into a fighting stance. "Everybody knows about the Uchiha clan and their greatness. I also keep hearing about the new Ozuma clan and the prowess of its heir. I want to see if the rumors are true. By fighting the both of you, I shall have my answer. Also..." he trailed off. His cheeks went slightly red when he saw the pink-haired kunoichi, who looked ready to throw up in any second. "... Oh Sakura-san, I am in love with you!"

"Noooooooo!" Sakura shrieked. "You are too weird to be real! Those eyebrows! That hair! That spandex jumpsuit! Everything about you freaks me out!"

"You truly are an angel sent from heaven." Lee said before blowing her a kiss that turned into a sticky-looking Valentine's Day heart. Sakura barely managed to dodge it.

Shujinko was completely aghast. 'What sort of jutsu was that? I've never seen anything like it!'

"Nice dodge, but will you be able to dodge this?" Lee questioned before sending her a barrage of kisses. Sakura almost fainted out of terror and proceeded to dodge every single one of the Valentine's Day hearts. She'd rather replace those hearts with shurikens, for they were far less dangerous.

"WHY DON'T YOU KEEP THOSE KISSES TO YOURSELF!? I AM NOT INTERESTED IN YOU!"

"... There is no reason to be so negative, Sakura-san."

Meanwhile, Naruto was growling and clenching his fists. It was always the same. Sasuke and Shujinko received all of the attention while he was ignored. It happened with that Gaara freak, it happened back at the second floor and it was happening now. Why? Why couldn't he have some of the attention? Wasn't he just as strong as those two, if not stronger? That was when realization dawned upon him. The reason for why he was ignored was because the reputation of his male teammates already preceded them. He needed to take matters into his own hands and start showing people just how strong he truly was. Then, and only then, would people be interested in him.

Sasuke decided to put an end to the stupid charade. "Let me get this straight: You've heard of the Uchiha clan, and yet you're still challenging me? You must be even more of a nutcase than what I first gave you credit for. Fine, I'll teach you about my clan... the hard way."

"Excellent. Then let us-"

"HOLD IT!" Naruto shouted, earning himself a somewhat confused look out of Lee. "That freak is mine. I get him first."

Sasuke shrugged. "Go for it."

"Naruto..." Sakura warned.

"What? I'll have this guy on the floor in like two minutes."

"Naruto, don't be so quick to judge. We don't know anything about this guy." Shujinko said with annoyance. Overconfidence was one of Naruto's biggest flaws, and even if he was his teammate and friend, Shujinko decided that Naruto needed to learn not to claim victory before actually fighting. Maybe Lee could teach him that lesson?

"I don't care!" Naruto replied hotly. "I don't know anything about him, but I'll let him know something about me! My name is Uzumaki Naruto, the greatest ninja of all Konoha and future Hokage! I won't lose to someone like him!"

"My apologies, Naruto-kun. But I must decline your challenge. I am only here to fight Sasuke-kun and Shujinko-kun." Lee said as he extended his palm.

"Oh yeah? Well get a load of this!" Naruto shouted before charging against the green-clad Genin. "Those two don't compare to me! Believe it!" Letting out a war cry, the Uzumaki jumped straightforward and tried to punch his adversary. Lee merely deflected the incoming fist using nothing but two fingers. Naruto lost his balance, but tried to use his position to his advantage by placing his hand on the floor and use the momentum to kick Lee with his left leg.

Lee ducked down and whirled around as he kicked the hand Naruto was using to support himself. "Konoha Senpuu!" he yelled, sending Naruto spinning on his lower back into a wall. Naruto was K.O.

'Wow, he's actually strong.' Sakura thought, momentarily forgetting Lee's creepiness.

Shujinko narrowed his eyes. 'His form and stance is impeccable. Judging by the way he moves, this guy must be a Taijutsu user, and a serious one at that.' he analyzed.

'If he's well-versed in Ninjutsu or Genjutsu as well, then this guy will definitely be a threat in the future.'

"Do you get it now? Neither you or Shujinko-kun are able to defeat me, for I am the strongest Genin there is." Lee declared as he straightened up. "If you do not believe me, come at me and I will prove it to the both of you."

Sasuke stared at the ground before smirking. "Sounds like fun. Let's do this."

"Sasuke-kun, we don't have time." Sakura pleaded. "We have to turn in our applications in less than half an hour."

Shujinko knew it was useless to argue. Sasuke was a very proud individual, and there was no way he would back out of a challenge, especially when he already accepted it.

"Don't worry. It won't take me more than five minutes." Sasuke boosted before he darted at Lee.

Once the Uchiha was close enough, Lee jumped over him and tried to kick him. Sasuke barely had enough time to duck down and avoid getting hit. Just like Naruto did before, Lee placed his hand on the floor and went for another kick. 'I'm not moving fast enough!' Sasuke realized as he brought his arms up to protect himself. Then, he saw his adversary using his free hand to perform a handsign. Before he knew it, he was lying on the ground, struggling to get up and feeling like someone had just punched him across his face using a metal glove. He could taste the blood somewhere inside his mouth.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura shouted, horrified to see her crush hurt.

'He did a hand sign before he kicked Sasuke.' Shujinko thought as he watched his teammate grunting in pain. "But Sasuke already had his guard up. So what did Lee do? Did he paralyzed Sasuke using Genjutsu? But it was so fast and he only did one hand sign. Maybe he's also skilled in Genjutsu as well? If that's the case, then we need to stay out of his way during the Chunin Exams.'

When Sasuke got up, Shujinko saw him smirking slightly. "Alright, it's time to step it up a notch." he said before revealing reddish eyes.

'So that's how it is. He's using his Sharingan to anticipate Lee's techniques. Now he has a chance to dodge his attacks and hopefully find an opening.' Shujinko thought.

Sasuke ran towards Lee, intending to see what sort of Ninjutsu or Genjutsu he was using to pass through his defenses. He came closer, and closer, and closer...

BAM!

The golden-eyed boy winced. In the last second, Lee lowered himself and gave the Uchiha a jaw-shattering kick, sending him back once again. 'Damn, this guy kicks like a freaking horse or something. But what did he do now? He didn't use a single handsign and yet Sasuke was unable to defend himself. How come he couldn't counterattack his kick when he was using the Sharingan?'

Sakura was completely beside herself. She couldn't believe her precious Sasuke-kun was losing against a weirdo like Lee. 'Even with the Sharingan, he still can't touch him! What is going on!?'

"Do you understand now, Sasuke-kun?" Lee asked as Sasuke stood up again. "I am only using Taijutsu. No illusions, no techniques, just pure hand-to-hand combat." the spandex-wearing Genin stated before taking the offensive and charging against the Sharingan wielder.

To say that Sasuke was getting hurt was an understatement. He wasn't just getting beaten by Lee, he was getting mauled by him. Shujinko had never seen Sasuke struggling so much to keep up in a fist fight before. Even though Shujinko didn't specialized in Taijutsu, he was very proficient in the art of hand-to-hand combat, and even more so now with the Karura Tensei. But Lee was something else. He was using nothing but his impressive speed and strength to defeat Sasuke. There was no Ninjutsu or Genjutsu involved, only Taijutsu. He had beaten Sasuke before, but never the way Lee was doing now, overwhelming his opponent with near unavoidable kicks and punches.

At one point, Sasuke lost it and tried to fight back. "Why you-!" he snarled as he threw a jab, but Lee quickly jumped back, not even looking tired.

"I already know your technique. Forget it, it won't work on me. I know that Sharingan allows you to see my movements before I do them, giving you an indisputable advantage over most of your opponents. But Taijutsu is different from Ninjutsu and Genjutsu."

"What's your damn point!?" Sasuke scowled.

"The reason why I am not trying to hide my moves is because I have no need to. You may be able to predict my attacks, but you do not have the speed to stop them. If your body cannot react in time, then what good is that Sharingan of yours?"

Shujinko gasped at the revelation. Lee attacked Sasuke using nothing but Taijutsu, so the Uchiha replied in kind. But just because Sasuke was able to predict Lee's attacks didn't mean he could counterattack, or even defend himself for that matter. He could see the future, but he wasn't able to change it because his body couldn't react in time. When he thought about it like that, it was actually quite logical. 'This guy probably trains like crazy. Even with the Karura Tensei activated, I can barely hit Sasuke a few times. If Sasuke keeps fighting Lee, he may end up with serious injuries.'

Lee started talking again. "I believe one thing. I believe there are two types of ninjas: The geniuses and the hard-workers. You and Shujinko-kun are geniuses who were born with natural talent. But I am not like you two. I am a hard-worker who has to train every day of his life."

Now Shujinko was offended. He, a genius? That wasn't true. Ok, so maybe he was born with some talent, but it was his dedication and his desire to be the best shinobi he could be what truly made him strong. He didn't spend all of those hours training with Sasuke and studying at night just to have people calling him 'a natural genius'. He wasn't naturally good at everything, and he most certainly wasn't a genius. Geniuses were individuals such as the Yondaime Hokage and Kakashi, not him.

"And now, I shall prove my point." Lee said before kicking Sasuke and sending him flying for a third time. While in mid-air, Lee positioned himself behind him with the bandages of his right hand unwrapped. "Hard work beats natural talent." he whispered.

The Ozuma had seen enough. If this was one of Lee's finishing moves, then Sasuke was definitely going to be... well, finished. Team 7 could NOT afford to lose Sasuke minutes before the start of the Chunin Exams. He didn't care if stopping the fight was dishonorable or disrespectful, he was going to stop it one way or another. "Sakura, catch Sasuke!" Shujinko ordered as he jumped towards Lee with the intention of pushing him away.

THUCK

Everybody turned their heads. The end of Lee's bandage was pinned to the wall with a paper pinwheel. Lee recognized the paper pinwheel and paled. "This is not good." he whispered to himself. Instead of continuing with his technique, Lee backed away from Sasuke and landed on the floor. Sakura managed to catch Sasuke and soften his fall, but the raven-haired boy still landed hard.

"That is enough! Lee, stop this nonsense right now!"

Shujinko turned around and saw red and yellow... talking... turtle, wearing a headband around his neck.

Huh?

But what surprised him even more was that Lee was standing right in front of the turtle with his head bowed and talking back. "You... You were watching our fight?"

"Indeed, I was. You know that technique is forbidden, and rightfully so. What were you thinking?"

"M-My sincerest apologies." Lee stuttered. "I was in the wrong." The turtle glared harshly at him, causing Lee to flinch visibly. "It was an honest mistake! I was in the middle of a fight, you see, and I got carried away by-"

"No excuses!" the turtle interrupted. "A shinobi only uses his secret techniques when he has no other choice. Even the most inexperienced Genin knows that! You should be embarrassed of yourself!"

Sasuke removed the blood that was pouring out of the corner of his mouth with the use of his right arm warmer. 'How could I lose to that freak!?' he thought with rage. Being beaten was bad enough, but being beaten by such a ridiculous-looking guy only added insult to injury. Despite what many fangirls believed, Sasuke wasn't unbeatable and he was aware of it. His spars with Shujinko were proof of that. But at least their fights had been long, exhausting and well-fought. But this guy... this guy defeated him in less than ten minutes using nothing but Taijutsu and without breaking a sweat. The fact that he fought with his Sharingan most of the time only increased his shame.

Meanwhile, Naruto was trying to make sense of what just happened. He remembered fighting Lee, getting knocked out, waking up, watching Sasuke getting beaten, and now a turtle was reprimanding Lee. He tried really hard to come up with a logical conclusion, but his efforts were in vain. 'What the heck happened while I was unconscious? And why is Lee apologizing to a turtle? Wait, is that turtle wearing a headband? Yeah, he is! So he's like a ninja turtle?' Not knowing what to think anymore, he rejoined his team. "Sakura-chan, that's a turtle, right?"

"Of course! What else could it be, baka!?" Sakura snapped, not feeling like responding dumb questions with kind answers.

"But why is Lee apologizing to a turtle? Can turtles become senseis too?"

That... was not a dumb question considering the situation. "I... How am I supposed to know!?" she asked back in a hurried whisper.

"Your unfitting behavior deserves a punishment. Lee, are you ready to respond for your actions?" the turtle asked.

Lee nodded. "... I do."

"Very well. Come, Maito Gai!"

POOOOOF

"Well hello there! What's shaking everybody? You're all enjoying the springtime of youth, aren't you?"

Shujinko looked up and nearly fell when he saw the man standing on top of the turtle. 'Holy crap! Who... What is that guy!? he thought, feeling absolutely baffled and somewhat terrified. The man was even weirder than Lee! He dressed and looked almost exactly like him. Same haircut, same spandex jumpsuit, same leg warmers, and his eyebrows... his eyebrows were even thicker and fuzzier! To make things even worse, his spandex jumpsuit seemed to be even tighter than Lee's, almost looking like a second skin.

"An even bigger weirdo came out!" Naruto screeched while shaking. "Look at those eyebrows! I think they're alive or something!"

"I don't... I can't..." Sakura whimpered, hugging herself and trying to understand how two people could show such bizarre sense of fashion.

Sasuke said nothing, but the look on his face showed that he was equally disturbed.

"I see now where Bushy Brows gets his creepiness from." Naruto bluntly stated.

Lee turned around and pointed his finger at Naruto. "How dare you insult Gai-sensei! He is one of the greatest men in the entire world!"

"Well excuse me for not seeing his greatness! I was too busy watching him crawl up from beneath a freaking turtle!"

"He did not-!"

"Give it a rest, Lee." Gai interrupted his student, not looking offended at all. Lee looked like he wanted to say something, but obediently nodded his head. "Excellent. Now, for your punishment... LEE, YOU BAKA!" the Jounin roared before punching the boy hard enough to send him flying, much to Team 7's shock. To make things even more confusing, Gai then approached his student and kneeled before him. "Lee... You foolish boy. You know how much I detest having to punish you. Why do you make me do this?" he asked with a shaky voice.

"S-Sensei?" Lee sniffled, tears flowing freely.

And now Maito Gai was crying as well. "Shhhhh, there is no need for words, Lee. I understand."

"Gai-sensei..."

"Lee..."

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

The two spandex-wearing shinobi embraced one another in a fierce hug as the background suddenly transformed into a sunset with crashing waves behind. "Kai!" Shujinko exclaimed as he tried to dispell the frightening Genjutsu. Just imagine his surprise when the illusion kept on going. "Kai! Kai! Kai!" It was useless. He even activated his Kekkei Genkai for help, but not even the power of nature was able to fight back the Genjutsu. The brown-haired boy was truly scared now. 'Oh Kami, why am I watching this? I don't think I'll ever be the same again.'

Eventually, the hug came to an end and so did the disgusting illusion. Gai stood up and wiped his tears before placing a hand on Lee's shoulder. "Oh Lee, you are simply going through a phase. You are too old to be called a boy, yet too young to be called a man. But do not be afraid, for I was once your age as well. We all make mistakes while exploring the depth of our youth, and you shall make amends by running 500 laps around the village, starting right now!"

"Hai!"

"So, you're not entering the Chunin Exams then?" Naruto asked innocently.

Gai had the decency to look sheepish as he scratched the back of his head. "Ah, yes. I forgot about that. Lee, not only did you disobeyed the rules regarding that technique, but you also kept your team and these fine young group of Genins from handing out their application forms, thus creating an unnecessary interlude that could damage the reputation and development of both parties including yourself. For that, I must give you a harsher punishment. Your punishment will be 750 laps instead of 500. How does that sounds?"

"Outstanding, sir! I cannot think of a better punishment!"

...

"They're crazy." Sakura deadpanned.

"Crazy?" Shujinko repeated in disbelief. "Sakura, they're not just crazy. They're downright mental."

Sakura nodded slowly before realizing that the creepy Jounin was staring at them. "Ghah! He's looking our way!"

"Tell me, how's Kakashi doing?" Gai asked.

"Do you know him?" Sasuke asked back.

"Do I know him?" Gai chuckled. "Of course I do. He is my eternal rival, after all."

Shujinko nearly snorted in disbelief. The idea of Hatake Kakashi, one of Konoha's top Jounins, having that spandex-wearing weirdo as a rival was ludicrous. But once he thought about it, he realized that his statement might actually be true. Lee looked like a complete joke, but his Taijutsu skills were undoubtable. Maybe it was the same case with Gai? He was a Jounin, after all. That alone made it clear that he wasn't one to mess with despite his appearance. And if Lee's proficiency was anything to go by, he seemed like a teacher who knew his stuff. 'It's similar to Kakashi-sensei. He looks tired and lazy, and he is, but when it comes down to it, he's a first-class shinobi.'

Naruto and Sakura, however, weren't so convinced. "No way!" both of them shouted.

And of course, Lee was instantly defending his sensei's honor. "How disrespectful! If Gai-sensei says so, then it is true!"

Gai waved them off, as if he was used to having people questioning his achievements. "Don't mind them, Lee. After all, the actions of a shinobi speak louder than the words he pronounces." he said. Before any member of Team 7 had time to blink, Gai was already behind their backs. "My record is 49 losses and 50 wins. And just to let you know, I am the one who has the high ground."

The Ozuma gasped when he realized Lee's sensei was standing right behind them. He spun around and stared at the spandex-wearing Jounin in shock. 'How can he be so fast? It's like he vanished or something! Haku was fast, but this guy is on a whole different level. Maybe he wasn't bluffing when he said he was Kakashi-sensei's rival.'

"H-H-How did you beat Kakashi-sensei!?" Naruto stuttered out of shock.

"Well, the thing is that I am faster and stronger than Kakashi. Not to mention, considerably more handsome."

'I'm not so sure about that last aspect.' Shujinko sweat dropped.

"See? I told you Gai-sensei is the finest shinobi there is!" Lee exclaimed in victory.

"On behalf of my youthful student, I ask you to forgive him for any trouble he might have caused. Look deep into my dazzling eyes and accept my sincere apology." Gai said while showing off his shiny set of teeth. "Lee, I believe you should allow Kakashi's students to go now. They have to hand in their application form if they want to take part in the Chunin Exams, don't they?" The Jounin threw a kunai at the paper pinwheel, knocking it out of the wall and liberating the Genin's bandages.

While Lee started to wrap the bandages back, Shujinko had the opportunity to see his hand. His knuckles were abused, almost defaced. Half of his hand's skin was scrapped and there were a few stitches here and there. He was no medic, but even he could tell his hand was in bad shape. 'Considering how hard he hits, I guess I shouldn't really be surprised.'

"Very well, Lee. Me and Ningame will be leaving now. Give it your best shot and let everyone know the extent of your youth!"

"Hai!"

And with a poof of smoke, both Jounin and turtle were gone.

"Sasuke-kun, Shujinko-kun, there is something I must confess." Lee started to say, gaining the attention of the Uchiha and the Ozuma. "Before we fought, I stated that I am the strongest Genin around. That was not true. I certainly wanted to test my skills against yours, but I cannot proclaim myself as the strongest Genin, for my teammate is the one with that tittle."

Shujinko narrowed his eyes. 'So, according to Lee, one of his teammates is stronger than him. Is he talking about Tenten or that Neji guy? I'm not sexist or anything, but I have a feeling he's referring to the Hyuuga. He seemed a little arrogant and somewhat of a jerk, like Sasuke.'

"I am planning on defeating him. You two were only meant to be a practice session. Be advised, Sasuke-kun. If we meet again, I shall show you no mercy." Lee warned, making Sasuke growl at him. He now looked at the golden-eyed boy. "Shujinko-kun, we might not have been able to confront each other, but the warning goes to you as well. Even if you are one of the most talented Genins of your age, your prowess will not be enough to defeat me."

"We'll see about that." Shujinko replied, not sounding defiant but neither scared. Of course he recognized Lee as a strong opponent, but he was not about to show fear or hesitation. After all, Lee had yet to see what he was truly capable of.

Lee nodded. "I have said what I had to. I will see you later." he said before leaving the scene.

...

"Heh, looks like the Uchiha clan isn't as strong as everyone says they are." the Uzumaki suddenly said, hands behind his head.

"Shut up, Naruto-baka!" Sakura shrieked.

Sasuke was glaring at Naruto so violently even Shujinko was starting to get scared. "Keep your mouth shut, usuratonkachi. Next time I see that clown, I'll slaughter him."

"Oh please, you were getting your butt handed to you a minute ago. What makes you think next time will be any different?"

The Ozuma decided to intervene before Sasuke killed Naruto. "Naruto, you're in no position to talk trash. Sasuke may have lost, but at least he was able to fight back for a while. You didn't even last half a minute against him."

Naruto shrugged. "Hey, I'm just calling things the way I see them. Besides, did you see how busted his hands were? He must have trained day and night. He trained more than Sasuke, that's for sure. That's all there is to it."

The raven-haired boy stared at the ground, apparently pondering about the Kyuubi Jinchuriki's words. Then, much to the surprise of his teammates, he let out a wide smirk. "These Chunin Exams... Things are getting interesting. I can't wait to see what's next."

"We finally agree on something, teme!" Naruto exclaimed with a foxy grin.

"Let's do this, I'm ready." the pink-haired kunoichi said. She was still nervous, but most of all, she was anxious to prove herself. To let everyone know Team 7 had a worthy kunoichi.

Shujinko chuckled. "If only Kakashi-sensei could see us right now. Alright, are we gonna do this or what?"

Sasuke nodded vigorously, feeling more excited than he had ever felt before. "Let's get started. Naruto! Shujinko! Sakura!"

* * *

Aaaaaaaand that was chapter 16.

I wanted to keep going and finish the first part of the exams, but that would've made this chapter way too long. So yeah, the Chunin Exams will officially start next chapter. Also, this update makes the story over 100.000 words long. Cheers!

Some of you might be wondering why I decided to make Sakura start her medical training earlier than canon-Sakura. I never really liked how Pre-Shippuden canon-Sakura was too much brain and little action, so why not introduce her to Medical Ninjutsu? Don't worry, she's still a novice and she's still a little crazy.

Were the fight scenes alright? I sure hope so. PM me or review if you would like me to improve certain parts. Always happy to receive constructive criticism.

Review, Favorite and/or Follow if you like how this story is going. You guys are my biggest motivation.

Katon: Housenka no Jutsu – Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu

Fuuton: Daifuuburo no Jutsu – Wind Style: Great Wind Blow

Konoha Senpuu – Leaf Whirlwind

Ja ne!


	17. Chapter 17

**CHAPTER 17: THE FIRST EXAM**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

|Konoha's Academy, Room 301|

'Well, crap. There are a LOT of teams here.' Shujinko thought as he seized the crowd of people that was inside Room 301. Ninjas from Kusagakure, Sunagakure, Otogakure, Takigakure, Amegakure and other ninja villages were gathered around and separated accordingly. Some of the participating teams had members over eighteen, and that worried the brown-haired boy. He seriously doubted that he could stand up against a shinobi 6 years older and more experienced than him. Sure, they sort of stood their own against Zabuza, but they didn't really fought him. Besides, they had their sensei back then. Right now, they were on their own, with no Kakashi to tell them what to do and what not to do. 'We need to keep an intermediate level of profile. If we make ourselves look weak, every other team will jump at us the second they see us. If we make ourselves look strong, we might grab unwanted attention. What's more, we still don't know what we have to do, so we still don't know if we should lay low or not.'

"Sasuke-kun!" a familiar voice squealed. "I've missed you sooooo much!"

Aaaaaaah yes, who else but Yamanaka Ino.

Shujinko rolled his eyes. Ino was... not his kind of person. She was loud, obnoxious and way too full of herself. She was kinda like Naruto in a way. Naruto was definitely loud and obnoxious when it came to certain things. And while he wasn't full of himself, he certainly wasn't short of ego. But it wasn't fair to compare their attitudes, Shujinko knew. Ino grew up in a respected and steady clan with a mother and a father who cared for her. Naruto grew up receiving nothing but despise and mistreat. Shujinko was almost certain that Naruto's booming voice was the product of growing up alone and starving for attention, or at least partially. Ino had everything she needed in order to become a strong and respectable kunoichi, yet she barely showed any interest at all. Naruto was mocked by classmates and even teachers during their Academy years, yet his resolve was unwavering. There really was no point in comparing the both of them. They were alike, but for all the wrong reasons.

"Stop touching Sasuke-kun, Ino-pig!" Sakura growled at the blonde, who was currently hugging Sasuke from behind.

"Oh, hello Sakura. I see your forehead hasn't changed a bit. Still as wide as ever."

Not wanting to deal with something as stupid as fangirlism, Shujinko stepped away from the scene and searched for another familiar face. He smiled at the sight of Shikamaru and Choji. "Hey guys, long time no see."

Shikamaru sighed. "Hey."

"Hey Shujinko! Want a chip?" Choji offered as he extended his bag of barbeque-flavored chips. Shujinko smiled and took one. He knew how much the Akimichi adored his junk food, so for him to offer his food was a sign of friendship.

"Thanks. So, how have you guys been doing lately? I haven't seen any of you since our last day in the Academy."

"The life of a Genin is just way too troublesome for my taste." the heir of the Nara clan said in his usual tired tone. "Asuma-sensei is a slave driver. He actually makes us train... and do stuff. I swear, it's such a drag."

The Ozuma raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you entering the Chunin Exams? Wait, don't answer that. It's because of your mom and Ino, right?"

Choji snickered at the accuracy of Shujinko's conclusion. "Shikamaru's mom threatened him with no more Shogi and cloud-watching if he didn't take the exams. As for Ino, she said she wouldn't allow Sakura to outrank her. She also said something about impressing Sasuke."

"She said that? Why, that doesn't sounds like the Ino I know at all." Shujinko said with heavy sarcasm.

Another sigh from the Nara. "Women are troublesome. Bossy women are even more troublesome. At this point, I don't know who's the troublesomest: Ino or my beloved mother."

"Wow, nice vocabulary. Have you ever thought about using another word instead of troublesome?"

"Replacing the word troublesome would be too troublesome."

"Huh? Hey, look who got here! It's The Three Stooges!" Naruto exclaimed once he noticed Team Asuma.

Shikamaru's eye twitched. "Stop calling us that, you troublesome blond."

"Well, what do you know? Looks like we stumbled upon a little Academy get-together." someone said as he approached both teams. It was Inuzuka Kiba, followed by Aburame Shino and Hyuuga Hinata. "So all of the Rookie 10 are here, huh? This should be fun." he said before smirking at Shujinko. "If it isn't Golden Boy in the flesh. I wasn't expecting you to be here."

Kiba held somewhat of a grudge against the brown-haired boy. It all started when they were nine years-old. That was the time when Shujinko started to get popular for his skills showed in class. Because he came from a civilian family, Kiba never expected the golden-eyed youth to be as good as the clan-borns of the class such as him. Heck, he became better than the clan-borns with the exception of Sasuke. Kiba had nothing against civilian-born ninjas, but because clan-borns were supposed to do better than the others, it irked him that someone who came (or used to came since the Ozuma clan was no longer a civilian family) from a far more humble background surpassed him. The grudge faded a little over time, but it was still there.

Shujinko smirked right back at him. "Kiba, long time no see. I hope you haven't gone soft since you became a Genin." He didn't know why, but there was something in Kiba that made Shujinko behave a little more arrogant towards him. Considering how easy-going and modest he was, it was a strange, yet not entirely unwelcomed feeling for him. He supposed trash-talking was their way of bonding.

"You wish." Kiba snorted. "Kurenai-sensei trained us like crazy. We are the toughest team out here."

"You seem confident, Kiba." Sasuke said as he faced the Inuzuka. "Just be careful that mouth of yours doesn't get you in trouble."

"Yeah, that's right! And besides, anyone with half a brain knows that Team 7 is going to win this thing!" Naruto boasted, his hyperactivity kicking in. He then noticed

the girl that was standing next to Kiba. "Oh, hey Hinata."

The face of the Hyuuga Heiress went red. "N-Naruto-kun..." she managed to mutter as she tried her hardest to hide the color that was staining her cheeks. This probed to be a hard task considering that most Hyuugas had pale skin, and she was certainly not an exception. Naruto just stood there, wondering why on Earth Hinata acted so weird every time he addressed her. He knew she was quiet and timid by nature, but for some reason, her shyness levels went even higher whenever they interacted. He also couldn't help but find strange how her face reddened every time he looked at her. In the end, he shrugged off his doubts and decided that Hinata's behavior was simply one of life's greatest mysteries, very much like why he couldn't be Hokage right now and why there was no international ramen day. Well, one thing was for sure. Once he became Hokage, he would create an international ramen day. Believe it.

"I don't want to interrupt this lovely reunion, but you guys should really consider keeping your voices down a bit. There are other people in this room, after all."

Everyone turned around to see the one who recently spoke. It was a boy who seemed to be noticeably older than any of the Rookie 10, five of six years older at the least. He had long gray hair done in a ponytail and wore round glasses, giving him an intellectual, almost book-worm look. The symbol carved on his headband showed that he was a shinobi from Konoha. "And who are you supposed to be?" Ino demanded.

"My name is Yakushi Kabuto, a Genin from Konoha just like you." the teen responded politely, not looking bothered by the rudeness displayed by the Yamanaka. "Everyone here is feeling nervous for the exams, and your loud chit-chat isn't really helping. But I guess I can't really blame you since you're rookies taking the exam for the first time. You remind me of myself when I was younger."

"I take it this isn't your first time taking the Chunin Exams?" Shujinko asked tentatively.

Kabuto nodded. "That's right."

"Really? So how many times have you tried? Is this your second time? Third time?" the Uzumaki guessed.

"Actually, this is my seventh time." Kabuto chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head in slight embarrassment.

"You failed the Chunin Exams six times in a row? Wow, you must suck." Kiba bluntly stated.

The gray-haired teen narrowed his eyes a little. "I assure you, the Chunin Exams are not easy. That's why I'm here to give you some advice."

Despite his rudeness, Kiba's statement brought up a valid point. Was it really wise to heed advice from a guy who failed the Chunin Exams six times in a row? It's not like Shujinko could blame Kabuto for failing the exams. Of course the Chunin Exams were tough, that was common knowledge. But failing it six times? That was sort of suspicious. Kabuto was certainly old enough to be a Chunin, maybe even a Jounin. A Genin his age should definitely have the necessary amount of experience and knowledge by now. 'It's kinda strange. But maybe it's not entirely his fault? Maybe his teammates are also to blame. You can't attend the Chunin Exams without the rest of your team, after all. Even so, it's still hard to believe that he and his team have failed six times.'

And also, why was Kabuto helping them? Sure, he was from Konoha as well, but he was also an enemy as far they knew. Was he truly trying to help them out of the kindness of his heart, or was there an ulterior motive? 'If this is how he treats the competition, then it's no wonder he's still a Genin. He should know by now that a shinobi must never underestimate his opponent or any potential threat.'

Sasuke seemed to share some of his teammate's thoughts. "How are you supposed to help us?"

"With these." Kabuto replied as he brought a stack of cards out of his pouch. "These cards are very special. They're called Ninja Info Cards and their purpose is to allow information to be stored. With the use of my chakra, I can add whatever I want into them. Because the Chunin Exams are held only twice a year, I've spent the last four years gathering information about roughly 200 participants, including the ones from this year. So you see, I haven't wasted all of my time."

Shujinko tried to hide any signs of wariness to the best of his abilities and kept a straight face. "And how specific is your information, Kabuto-san?"

"I think a demonstration would be better. Is there anyone you'd like to know something about? If I can find them, then I'll be able to show you at least some basic information about them."

The Ozuma was about to speak again, but his raven-haired teammate was faster than him. "There are two individuals I want to know more about. Their names are Rock Lee from Konoha and Sabaku no Gaara from Suna."

"So you have their names, huh? Well, that makes things a lot easier." Kabuto said as he started going through the stacks of cards. Half a minute later, he nodded at Sasuke. "Rock Lee from Konoha and Sabaku no Gaara from Suna. I have them right here."

"Show me." the Uchiha demanded, as if speaking to a servant.

Shujinko rolled his eyes. 'Learn some manners, you ass.'

Alas, Kabuto did as told and placed two blank cards on the floor. He poured some chakra into the first card, which let out a POOF and suddenly showed a picture of Lee, alongside some statistics and numbers. "Rock Lee from Konoha. He's about a year older than you guys. He has completed eleven C-ranks and twenty D-ranks. His Jounin sensei is Maito Gai and his teammates are Tenten and Hyuuga Neji." Shujinko could've sworn Hinata flinched upon hearing the name of one of her relatives. "This is his first time attending the exams. His Taijutsu skills are off the charts, but his Genjutsu and Ninjutsu skills are pretty much non-existent."

'So those Valentine's Day hearts Lee kissed at Sakura were not Ninjutsu? And that abominable illusion of those crashing waves was not a Genjutsu? Then what the hell were they?' Shujinko thought. That was a question that would probably remain unanswered for the rest of eternity.

"That's all I got from Rock Lee. Let's move on to Sabaku no Gaara. He's a Genin from Suna, as you already know. According to my info, this is his first time applying to the Chunin Exams. His teammates are Sabaku no Temari and Sabaku no Kankuro, sister and brother. He has completed an unknown amount of D-ranks, eight C-ranks and... Whoa, a B-rank!" Kabuto exclaimed in awe. "But that's not all. According to the info I have here, he has completed all of his missions without receiving a single scratch. As for his abilities, I'm afraid I don't know anything about them. However, it's fair to assume that he's very strong."

The golden-eyed boy frowned deeply. There was something wrong with Kabuto. How could he, a Genin from Konoha know about the progress of another Genin from Suna? According to his information, this was the first time Gaara attempted to pass the Chunin Exams. Therefore, there was no way Kabuto could've met Gaara in any of his previous attempts because Gaara hadn't participated in any of them. How can you possess information about someone you don't even know he exists? And now that he thought about it, how could Kabuto know about the quantity and the rank of the missions Gaara had taken so far? How could he know Gaara had never been injured in any of those missions? That kind of information was confidential. There was no way in hell Suna would ever hand out the documents of any of their shinobi to a mere Genin from Konoha. 'Something's not right. Either Kabuto-san is feeding us false information on purpose or he's not who he says he is. Whatever the case, I don't like this guy.'

If the mission to Nami no Kuni taught him one thing, it was that he needed to be always on the watch, always suspecting and always analyzing what he saw or heard. Because he saw himself as the observant one of the group, Shujinko took it upon himself to keep his team safe by constantly watching everything that surrounded them. If there was anything remotely suspicious, he'd alert his teammates whenever he could.

It was not easy for him. Being on constant alert took a mental toll, and Kakashi himself told him the psychological dangers that came with overthinking. A shinobi had to always be able to think properly in order to assimilate the facts and decide the next best course of action. That sort of mental-state came along with time, practice and experience. And while Shujinko was certainly observant and smart, he was still twelve years-old and he was still inexperienced. If that wasn't enough, his fear of failure only made things worse because it pushed him to the limits of his deduction skills. It was overloading and exhausting... but he was a shinobi. As such, he had to endure.

"Well, that's all I got from Rock Lee and Sabaku no Gaara. My advice for you is to avoid ninjas from villages you know nothing about, especially the ones from Otogakure. In comparison with the others, their village has little history. No one knows much about them."

"How tough do you think these exams will be?" Shujinko asked the 'good Samaritan'.

Kabuto let out a chuckle. "In all honesty, I think this is going to be the hardest one I've ever participated in. I did some research with my team before handing out our applications, and I have to say there are a lot of strong opponents. Some teams are very skilled, other teams are quite intelligent, other teams have a lot of experience, and there are some teams that have all three of those traits. Even with my Ninja Info Cards, I don't think I have much advantage. There's no doubt about it, these Chunin Exams will be the most challenging thing you guys will ever-"

"AAAAAAARRRGGHHH!" Naruto's voice boomed, gaining the attention of everyone that was inside the room. "MY NAME IS UZUMAKI NARUTO AND I'LL BEAT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU! BELIEVE IT!"

...

Shujinko gritted his teeth in not just anger, but fury. The stupidity of his teammate truly knew no boundaries. Everyone was now staring at the rookies with looks of hatred, disbelief, annoyance and other several related emotions. If the rookies weren't a target before, they sure as hell were now. Meanwhile, Naruto was sheepishly laughing while scratching the back of his head, acting as if nothing had happened. "Ah, that feels a lot better. I really needed to get that out of my chest."

That. Was. It. Shujinko gave Sakura a look that said 'make Naruto stop or I'm gonna kill him myself'. Fortunately, Sakura got the message and rewarded Naruto's outburst with a skull-cracking bop in the head. "Baka! Stop trying to act cool or you'll get us killed!"

"Hnh. Usuratonkachi."

Kabuto coughed before addressing the young Genins. "See? That's exactly what I'm talking about. If you keep doing that sort of theatre, you might as well-"

THUCK THUCK

Two kunais landed near Kabuto's feet, who managed to jump back just in time. Shujinko caught sight of an Oto ninja who looked like a mummy with all of his bandages wrapped around his head approaching Kabuto while performing the Ram hand sign. Once he was close enough, the mummy tried to punch him across his face, but Kabuto stepped back. Out of instinct, the Ozuma reached for his shurikens and held them steady.

Fortunately, the Oto nins ceased to attack, and Kabuto seemed to be fine if the smirk on his face was any indicator. The smirk, however, quickly vanished as his glasses were suddenly shattered by an invisible force. Before anyone could tell what was going on, Kabuto was on his knees and vomiting. "Kabuto-san!" Sakura shouted as she and Naruto made their way towards the grey-haired teen.

'What happened? I know Kabuto wasn't hit, I saw it with my own eyes!' Shujinko thought as he tried to make sense of what was happening. 'And why is he puking? And why were his glasses shattered? No, this has to be a jutsu of some sort. I saw that guy doing a hand sign before he attacked Kabuto. Besides, it doesn't matter how hard you hit, you simply can't make a person throw up by punching them in the face, and even if you could it wouldn't be this case before Kabuto clearly dodged it. Just who are these guys?'

"I expected a lot more from a veteran like you." Mummy Man said. He wore a strange furry cloak and grey robes with camo pants. his left eye was the only visible part of his face. "Listen here, you wimp. This is what you get when you insult our village. If I hear you one more time talking about Otogakure, I'll crush you."

"Write this in your pathetic little cards." his teammate, a boy of fourteen who had dark hair and obscure eyes, said with a smirk. "The Genins from Otogakure will become Chunins by the end of these exams." He then saw the way the golden-eyed boy was looking at them. "What do you want, punk? You want to be next?"

Shujinko's gaze hardened. "You don't want to do that."

"Oh, but I do want. In fact, I feel like teaching you a lesson right now." he said as he raised his hand and extended his palm. Shujinko quickly opened his scroll and unsealed his Fuuma Shuriken. He couldn't help but notice the strange hole that seemed to go deep inside the boy's hand, almost like a pipeline. Meanwhile, Mummy Man joined his teammate lifted the right sleeve of his tunic, revealing a metallic gauntlet with a pattern of holes in them. The same one he tried to punch Kabuto with.

Sasuke activated his Sharingan and went into a fighting stance. He saw what happened to Kabuto and there was no way he would allow his teammates to get injured minutes before the first exam. What was more, the abilities of those Oto nins were intriguing, and maybe he could decipher them with the use of his Sharingan. Meanwhile, Sakura helped Kabuto to stand up and quickly dragged him away from any possible danger that would come with the outburst. After all, one of the many duties of a medic was to protect injured comrades, and Kabuto was a Konoha Genin just like them. Lastly, Naruto crossed his fingers and was about to perform his trademark jutsu when a poof of smoke appeared behind them. "Listen up, you maggots! If someone throws a single weapon or does a single jutsu, that person will be automatically eliminated from the exams!"

The smoke faded away, revealing a number of Chunins and Jounins wearing a grey uniform. The man in the center wore the same outfit as the rest of them but with a black overcoat that reached his knees. The height and voice tone of the man itself was already intimidating, but what really caught Shujinko's attention were the two giant scars on his face.

The Genins from Otogakure reluctantly backed down. Shujinko did the same and sealed his weapon back into the scroll. 'That gauntlet... It definitely has something to do with that guy's previous attack. It looks like a weapon, but I'm not sure.' he thought as he eyed Mummy Man's metallic gauntlet.

"There you go. That wasn't so hard, now was it?" the tall man said with a smirk. "My name is Morino Ibiki, the proctor in charge of the first exam and your worst enemy if you don't abide my orders."

* * *

'It's been a while since I've done a written test.'

Shujinko found himself sitting inside one of the Academy's classrooms with a sheet of paper and two pencils on his desk. Honestly, he never expected the first part of the Chunin Exams to be a written test. Ninjas had to be smart, after all, so he supposed that a test to measure his intelligence was acceptable. Even if he wasn't the smartest boy around, he always received good grades back when he was still a student so he was confident he would do fine. Sasuke was going to be alright too. Sakura? Please, that girl was probably going to ace the test and finish earlier than everyone else. As for Naruto...

Ibiki raised his voice. "Alright everyone, pay attention to the following instructions. I will not answer any questions unless I say otherwise. Rule number one: This test is conducted on a point-reducing system, which means that all of you will begin with a perfect score of ten points. One point will be deducted by each answer you get wrong. For example, if you have three wrong answers by the end of the test, your final score is seven points. Rule number two: Teams will pass or fail depending on the total score of its members."

"Wait a second!" a girl from behind shouted. "Are you saying we'll be tested as a team!?"

"Silence! I'm in charge of this test and I will supervise it however I see fit!" Ibiki barked. The girl shifted uncomfortably in her seat and decided to close her mouth. "Rule number three: These men you see at your left are sentinels." he said as he pointed at a couple of ninjas wearing the proctor uniform. "They are here to keep an eye out for every single one of you. They are instructed to spot signs of cheating, and every time they do, two points will be deducted from you. If you get yourselves caught five times, you will be dismissed before the time ends. If that happens, then it just means that you don't have what it takes to become a Chunin."

'Damn, this guy is not messing around.' Shujinko thought as he looked at the scary-looking proctor. 'Ok, so I imagine this test will be somewhat harder than the ones we did when we were young. Sakura should still be able to pass this test with a good score. Sasuke and I should do well enough to pass. But Naruto... Ok, Naruto's test scores back at the Academy were awful, so this one shouldn't be different. Still, the combination of our scores should be sufficient as long as I, Sakura and Sasuke receive an acceptable mark.'

"Oh, one more little detail. If anyone gets a cero, he or she will be kicked out of the Chunin Exams along with his or her teammates."

...

'NAAAANI!?'

Shujinko was beside himself. He looked back at Naruto, who was sitting a couple of rows behind him. His face was as white as the sheet of paper in front of him and he was trembling like a puppy that just got out of the river. 'Damn it! He's an idiot when it comes to theoretical knowledge, and there's no way this test is on the same level as the ones we did in the past! If he doesn't gets one question right, then we're screwed!'

Ibiki spoke again. "You have one hour in total. The last question will be given fifteen minutes before the hour passes... GO!"

Everyone turned the page around and started writing as soon as Ibiki stopped talking. Shujinko wrote his full name, the date and the symbol of his village. He started reading the questions and...

'What the hell is this!?' he mentally screamed, eyes widened. The questions weren't just tough to answer, they were hard as hell! None of them talked about History, Shinobi Philosophy or Nin/Gen/Taijutsu Studies, which used to be Shujinko's favorite subjects. Most of them were about Mathematics, Physics and Logarithms, and none of them were easy to answer. Shujinko was able to do Math ok, but he was barely average at Physics and hated Logarithms. What was more, he was pretty sure there were some questions based on things that weren't explained or even mentioned during their time in the Academy. So what hell was he supposed to do? What the hell was Naruto supposed to do?

He took a deep breath and started reading the questions again. Some of them weren't as hard as others, but they all demanded time and focus. Shujinko calculated how much time it was going to take him to complete the 'not-as-hard' questions, coming to the conclusion that MAYBE he could answer four or five of them within the time limit. Even then he wasn't sure if he could answer them right.

'Ok, calm down. You need a clear mind to answer these questions. Let's repeat the instructions given to us by Ibiki. Alright, he talked about the whole point-reducing system, about how we will be tested as a team, about how we will be eliminated if we get caught cheating five times, and how we will fail if one of our teammates gets a cero. What can I get out of this?'

...

Was it just him, or did the third rule made no sense whatsoever?

'Why? Why would they allow us to cheat four times before kicking us out? That's completely illogical. I mean, this IS the Chunin Exams. You'd think they would be completely intolerant towards any form of cheating, but instead they're giving us not one, not two, not three, but four chances of cheating without calling us out. That's oddly lenient, and considering how just how complex these questions are, it's almost as if they... want us to cheat.'

Shujinko frowned. Was that a possibility? Did they truly want them to cheat without being caught? At first, it seemed quite ridiculous. Ibiki himself told them that he would become their worst enemy if they disobeyed their orders, and that man didn't look like a bluffer. But Shujinko couldn't imagine another reason as to why would they allow them to cheat so many times. 'Maybe they want us to take advantage of our four available shots?' he wondered as he subtly glanced at the other competitors. Some of them were already writing down their answers while others were still yet to pick up their pencils. Shujinko looked at his own test. It was blank.

'Well, this test isn't going to answer itself. Instead of relying on my intelligence, maybe I should rely on the intelligence of others... and my stealth skills. First, I need someone who actually has something done.' Very slowly, Shujinko turned his head to the right to see if there was anyone worthy of copying his answers. He spotted a fifteen year-old with brown hair and thick round glasses just like Kabuto's. He was skinny and had that 'introvert-library-rat' air around him. His hand was moving without signs fear or hesitation, almost as if he already knew the answers. 'Alright, that guy seems reliable enough. By the looks of it, he's already answering question number four, so I should wait a little longer before copying him. But how? It's not like I can stand up and take a peek at his test. Damn, this test must be a breeze for Hinata and Neji. I bet they're grateful for their Byakugan right now. If only I had a Kekkei Genkai that would allow me to enhance my eyesight... Oh sweet great-grandmother of Kami, I am such a baka.'

The Ozuma almost let out a wide grin. How could he have forgotten? He had the Karura Tensei for crying out loud! If he waited for the nerdy teen to finish a couple of more questions and then activated his Kekkei Genkai to see what he had written, then he would be able to pass the test without much difficulty! It didn't matter if the sentinels caught him because he would memorize all the answers he could from one good look, meaning that the sentinels would only deduct two points from his total score. If he was extra careful, the maybe he could cheat without getting caught and avoid getting two points deducted. It was excellent!

|30 minutes later|

'The nerdy guy is already finishing question number eight. Alright, this is it. Karura Tensei!' Shujinko mentally shouted, making sure to avoid looking suspicious. He lowered his head a little so the sentinels couldn't see the yellow marks around and below his eyes. Closing his left eye and widening his right as much as he could, Shujinko turned his head to the right and looked at his target. While during his training with the Karura Tensei, he discovered a neat trick: If he focused his sight real hard and waited for a couple of seconds, then the image or object he was looking at would slowly come closer to him at will. It felt like adjusting his vision through a pair of binoculars. It was still a feature that was under development, so he couldn't maintain it for very long. If he used that trick for more than four minutes straight, his eyes would start to get sore.

Once his eye started to get sore, Shujinko deactivated his Kekkei Genkai and blinked a few time to ease the small, but still present pain. He managed to memorize the six first answers and started to write them down on his own test. 'Ok, so I either have six or four points depending on whether I was caught or not. I don't know if my answers are correct or not, but it sure is a lot better than writing nothing. That dude has already finished answering all of the questions except for the last one, which will be given fifteen minutes before the hour passes. I'll copy the rest of his answers again, and if he gets all of them right, then the worst case scenario for me would be to score six points. Best case scenario? Nine points. He may not have every single question right, but it's a risk I have to take.'

And with that, the Ozuma waited a little before entering Hawk Sage Mode again...

|Fourteen minutes later|

'Ok, I've answered nine out of the ten questions. I'm doing fine, but what about Naruto? He hasn't been called by any of the sentinels, so there are only two alternatives: He has managed to cheat without getting caught or he hasn't attempted to cheat and hasn't answered anything... Oh please, please let it be the first alternative.' Shujinko pleaded to Kami. One third of the candidates were gone by now, and Shujinko had no intention of becoming part of the failed candidates.

"Your attention, please. We have fifteen minutes left, which means that the tenth and final question will be given now." Ibiki said. All of the remaining candidates looked at him, some of them anxious, some of them determined and some of them uncertain. The smirk on the proctor's face told them they weren't going to like what they were about to hear. "This question comes with a certain rule. If you want to back off from the exams, now's your time. You can apply again in six months. Those of you who want to stay, however, should take this into consideration: If you fail to answer this question, not only will you fail this exam, but you will never be able to take the Chunin Exams ever again."

No... freaking... way.

Shujinko's mouth nearly reached the desk. Never be able to take the Chunin Exams ever again? Impossible! There was no way in hell that could be legit, right?

Right?

"What the hell!? That's not fair!" Kiba exclaimed as he stood up. "There are others here who have taken the test before!"

"Then I guess you're unlucky for having me as your proctor." Ibiki replied with a dark chuckle. "Like I said before, I'm in charge of this test and I will supervise it however I see fit. And besides, you can't say I'm not giving you a way out. You're more than free to leave this room along with your team. Go ahead, no one will stop you. Just keep in mind that you'll have to take the exams next year... if you leave now, that is. Those who want out, now's your chance."

'No, that can't possibly be right.' Shujinko thought as he narrowed his eyes. 'It doesn't make any sense. Why would Konoha deny potential Chunins and Jounins by keeping them as Genin? It would be a total waste. Genins aren't allowed to take on B-ranks, A-ranks or S-ranks, no matter how strong they are. If a client came here and payed for an A-rank, they wouldn't send a Genin even if his skills are Jounin level. If I was a client, I wouldn't trust a Genin to complete an A-rank mission that I paid for. What's more, the village NEEDS those B-ranks, A-ranks and S-ranks to grow financially, and to do those missions they need Chunins and Jounins. Even if the village has lots of high-level shinobis right now, they constantly need more soldiers who can take the place of their fallen comrades. No, this guy has to be bluffing... I sure hope he is.'

"I-I'm sorry. I can't do this. I resign." an anonymous candidate said as he stood up and left, followed by his teammates who wore masks of anger and defeat.

"I can't do this either. I'm sorry, guys."

"I quit too."

"I quit."

"Sorry, this is too much."

"No... I can't go through with this."

One after one, the weak-willed candidates left the room. And for every Genin that quitted, two others followed. Before the announcement of the tenth question, around two-thirds of the candidates remained. Now there were less than half, and they just kept leaving and leaving. Shujinko started to feel the pressure and wondered if Ibiki truly was bluffing. He swallowed hard and took deep breaths to calm himself, trying his hardest to maintain his composure. If he gave up now, there was no way any of his teammates would forgive him, especially Sasuke. But did he want to stay a Genin forever? Hell no. Genins received little recognition from their superiors, except from maybe their senseis, and his dream was to be one of the strongest, most acknowledged shinobi of Konoha. The tittle of 'Shujinko, the almighty Genin' just didn't sound good. Besides, the money you received from doing a D-rank was insultingly low. He'd have to stay with his parents forever.

'I don't want to quit. I really, really don't want to quit... but what if I don't answer the tenth question? I wasn't capable of answering any of the nine questions on my own. The guy whom I got all the answers from is still here, so maybe I can copy his answer as well? But what if he doesn't know the answer? Or what if I get caught cheating? This question looks super important, so maybe they won't be as tolerant as before. Besides, there are a lot less candidates from before, so the sentinels won't have a hard time spotting me. Crap, crap, crap, what do I do? What would Kakashi-sensei do?'

 _"Remember this: In the shinobi world, those who break the rules are considered scum, and that's true. But those who abandon their friends are worse than scum."_

Shujinko chuckled drily to himself. 'I guess that answers my question. Very well, whatever decision my teammates take, I'll stick with them.' That was when he saw Naruto raising his shaky hand. 'Naruto? Are you giving up?' he thought in shock. 'Why? Is he thinking about us? Is he scared? Or maybe he's-'

SLAM

"I've had enough of this bull! I never back down and I never give up! I don't care if I stay a Genin for years, I'll still become Hokage one way or another! And if you think I'm joking, then ask me that damn question already!"

...

'... Or maybe he's not.' Shujinko smiled. That was the kind of guy Naruto was. He was at an overwhelming disadvantage and he knew it, yet he refused to give up and accepted the challenge with open arms. And besides, Shujinko realized he was right in a way. So what if he stayed a Genin? The rank of Genin was just that, a rank. He would let his prowess determine his fame, not some petty rank. Should he fail to answer the tenth question, he'd keep on going until he proved the Hokage that being a Genin was no longer fit for him.

Genin or not, Shujinko was going to forge his own legend as a shinobi and as a protector of his village.

Even Sasuke couldn't help but smirk at his teammate's statement. 'He's going for it even though he's completely clueless... The dobe has guts, I'll give him that.'

"This is a life-changing decision. Are you absolutely sure you're not gonna quit? You could stay a Genin for the rest of your life." Ibiki warned.

"What, did you hear me stutter?" the Kyuubi Jinchuriki scoffed. "I already told you I won't ever go back on my word. I'm ready for that question, so bring it on!"

Ibiki watched as the blond inspired the rest of the candidates with his speech. Where he once saw fear, he now saw determination. Where he once saw hesitation, he now saw willingness to take risks. In the end, he saw what he wanted to see, what was expected to be seen from a Chunin. They had no idea what they were up against, and they were still going for it. That was what he was looking for. That was the kind of Chunin the village needed.

He smirked. It was time to finish the first exam.

"If there are no more candidates who want out, then there is one thing left to say... Congratulations for passing the first part of the Chunin Exams!"

...

Huh?

Shujinko blinked once, twice, thrice... Nope, he was pretty sure he heard that right.

"Wait a second, what do you mean we pass?" Sakura questioned, looking just as stunned as he was relieved. "What about the tenth question?"

Ibiki laughed heartedly. "There never was one! Or at least, it wasn't one that you needed to write down your answer. You could say the tenth question was whether you wanted to pass the test or not. The only thing I did was to weed out the candidates that didn't have what it took."

"So the other nine questions were a waste of time?" Temari demanded.

"Quite the opposite, actually. The purpose of the nine questions was to see how good you were at gathering information without getting caught. There's a reason why you were tested as a team. I wanted to see how you dealt with the pressure. As you have probably noticed, the nine questions were far too complicated for the average Genin. They were Chunin level questions. Intelligence is always an important factor, of course, but what we were truly looking for was that you cheated without getting caught. Why do you think we gave you four chances of cheating?"

Temari let out an understanding 'huh'.

"Obviously, you needed someone who you could copy from. That's the reason why there are four Chunins disguissed among you. Those were the source where you could get your precious information from." Iibiki said as four teens stood and dispelled the Henge they were hiding themselves with. Shujinko gasped when he saw that the 'library-rat' he got his answers from was none other than a tall, blond-haired seventeen year-old wearing a sentinel's uniform. "In other words, it didn't really matter if the information you received was incorrect or not. It was your ability to get that information without getting caught what was at stake here." he said as he took off his bandana head-band.

'G-Geez! That guy looks like an alien or something!' Shujinko thought as he looked at the overwhelming amount of scars, burns and screw holes that Ibiki had. Almost every inch of his skull skin was distorted. When Kakashi unrevealed his left eye, Shujinko thought the scar he had must've hurt. But Kakashi had nothing on Ibiki when it came to scars. Seriously, it was no wonder why he wore the bandana. He looked freaking scary without it!

"Information... that is something that can save your lives and the lives of your comrades. You have to learn how to get it, and you have to learn how to keep it away from your enemies regardless of the methods they use against you. Keep this in mind: No information is ALWAYS better than false information. False information can lead to imminent disaster."

"Hang on a minute, are you telling me that we could've pass this test by doing nothing and accepting to take on the tenth question?" Shujinko asked in complete disbelief.

Ibiki's lips curled into a smirk. "In essence, yes."

"... Well, I'll be damned."

"We have reached the end of the first test and you all have passed it. I know many other candidates would've relented, but you kept forging on. For that, you've earned some of my respect. I hereby announce the end of the first part of the Chunin Exams. Good luck out there."

CRAAAASSH

Upon hearing the sound of the window crashing, Shujinko reached his kunai holster out of instinct. When he looked to the front, he saw a purple-haired kunoichi in her mid-twenties striking a heroic pose with a poster that said 'Behold! The awesome and incredibly sexy Mitarashi Anko is here! Welcome to the second part of the Chunin Exams!' behind her back. She wore a fitted mesh body suit that stretched from her neck down to her thighs, all of this under an open beige overcoat. No male failed to notice her lack of chest underwear... and the abundance of her chest. This caused several males to bleed out of their nose and Shujinko made sure to maintain eye-contact.

"... Is this part of the test?" the Uzumaki asked meekly, not truly understanding what in the name of Kami was going on.

"What's up, maggots? Ready for the second part of the Chunin Exams?" Anko exclaimed, befuddling every single Genin inside the classroom.

"You're here early, Anko." Ibiki said, not looking amused at all.

"Well, what do we have here?" Anko asked as he eyed the crowd. "Ibiki, why are there so many Genins here? I thought you were supposed to reduce the numbers to the minimum, weren't you?"

Ibiki shrugged. "What can I say? They're a tough bunch."

"Are they now? Oh well, no biggie. The numbers will be cut in half by the time I'm done with them."

And with that said, Shujinko steeled himself for the second part of the Chunin Exams.

* * *

The ending is kinda crappy, I know. I just really wanted to get this chapter done so I can move to the second part of the exams, where things will get interesting.

Review, Follow and Favorite

Ja ne!


	18. Chapter 18

**CHAPTER 18: ENTER THE FOREST OF DEATH**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

|Training Battle Zone 44, A.K.A. The Forest of Death|

'Talk about a fitting name.' Shujinko thought as he stared at the huge (as in you-could-fit-a-house-inside kind of huge) trees in front of him. He and all of the remaining candidates were gathered around outside the training ground where the second exam was going to take place, and lots of them were thinking among the same lines. Not only the trees were gigantic, but you could also hear creepy noises that were most definitely not human.

"May I have your attention, please?" Anko called in such a sugary tone that made it clear she was anything but sweet. "This is the place where the second phase of the Chunin Exams will take place. Some of you may have heard of it before, but for those Genins who are still wearing diapers, let me introduce to you: 'The Forest of Death'." she said, her brown eyes twinkling.

Sakura gulped. "This place is giving me the creeps."

Anko grinned in return. Seeing the scared faces of young, snot-nosed Genins was a joy for her. "Don't be surprised if you find a corpse or two inside. It's not called 'The Forest of Death' because of nothing, you know."

"Don't be surprised if you find a corpse or two inside. It's not called 'The Forest of Death' because of nothing, you know." Naruto repeated with a squeaky voice while doing a little mock-dance that consisted in moving his butt left and right. Shujinko facepalmed in return, feeling truly embarrased for the show his teammate was puting. "That name doesn't frighten me! I can handle anything that's inside that forest, believe it!"

"Oh my, looks like we have quite a dauntless gaki over here."

THUCK

It all happened too fast. Anko drew a kunai out of her sleeve and threw it to the ground, making a cut on Naruto's left cheek while she was at it. Before the blond Genin realized he was hurt, the purple-haired kunoichi was already behind his back. "Dauntless gakis like you are usually the ones who have the most fatal deaths." she hissed into his ear. "I swear, they leave such a mess with their bodies. All of their flesh ripped apart, all of their blood spilled around..." she made a pause to lick (Shujinko gagged a little at that) the blood that was pouring out of his cut. "... Although, with the kind of blood that you have, I wouldn't be surprised if I didn't found your body at all. The predators here do have a taste for hot blood."

Anko then felt a presence behind her back. Pulling out another kunai, she turned around just to see a ninja (who's sex was undeterminable to Shujinko) from Kusagakure holding her kunai she previously threw with his/her unnaturally long tongue. "I believe thisss belongs to you."

"Thank you, shinobi from Kusa." Anko replied with a fake smile. "But do yourself a favor and don't ever get behind my back like that. I might kill you if do that again."

"Khu khu khu, my sinceret apologiessss. I just get a little excited when I ssssee blood."

'Why do we have to compete against the biggest weirdoes the universe has to offer?' Shujinko thought in distress. 'So far we have Gaara, Lee, that Oto shinobi who looks like a mummy and now this freak. I can't even tell if that... individual is male or female.'

Once the Kusa nin stepped back, Anko grabbed a stack of papers out of her overcoat. "Now, before any of you gets inside that forest, you need to sign this. Don't worry, they're nothing out of this world. These are consent forms, and you're gonna have to read and sign them if you want to proceed to the second part of the Chunin Exams. As you all know, some of you may not return from this forest... at least not alive. These forms free Konohagakure from any responsibility. After all, we don't want any of your villages to sue us for your deaths, right? Here, gaki. Give one of these to every candidate who wants to take part in the test." Anko handed the consent forms to Naruto, who did as told despite his understandable dislike for the kunoichi that was licking his blood just a few moments ago.

While Anko explained what they were supposed to do, Shujinko carefully read his consent form:

 _(insert date here)_

 _Konohagakure no Sato, Hi no Kuni_

 _Through this document, Genin (insert your name here) from (insert your shinobi village here) hereby expresses his/her consent to participate in the second test of the Chunin Exams. He/She also declares that neither Konohagakure no Sato or Mitarashi Anko, proctor of the second test of the Chunin Exams, are to be responsible of any incident that might happen to him/her, including his/her demise. By signing this form, the Genin is also declaring that he/she is aware of the risks that comes with participating in this phase, and agrees to them regardless._

 _(Insert your signature here)_

 _Wishing the best of luck._

 _Sarutobi Hiruzen_

 _Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato_

'Kaa-san will never forgive me if she finds out I signed a form that liberates the village of any guilt should I die here.' Shujinko thought as he signed the document. He noticed some of the teams were hesitating to sign, and some teams refused to do it. Good. The less competition, the better... or maybe not?

"... And so, one half of the teams will be fighting to get an Earth scroll, while the other half will be fighting to get a Heaven scroll. You can't get to the tower without either of them and you can't open any of the scrolls before reaching the tower. One more thing you might want to take into consideration: There's a time limit. You have to reach the tower with both scrolls within five days. If you don't, you will be disqualified."

Shujinko narrowed his golden eyes. If the teams had to reach the tower with both scrolls, then at least half the teams were going to be disqualified, either by not reaching the tower, not reaching the tower with both scrolls or by the death of the members of the team. What was more, no one know what kind of scroll were they going to receive, which meant that they could very well fight against another team that has the same scroll as theirs. This test... was going to be troublesome.

Ino was outraged. "Five days out there!?"

"What are we supposed to eat!?" Choji exclaimed.

"What can you eat?" Anko repeated with amusement. "Just about everything. There are plenty of animals and plants that are eatable. The only thing you have to do is to find them... and avoid the bigger animals and deadly plants, of course."

"So, can we quit halfway through the test?" Shikamaru asked.

"Obviously not... Well, strictly speaking, you can. But don't be surprised if you get killed while surrendering."

"Troublesome."

The Ozuma raised his voice. "Are there any other ways of getting disqualified?"

"Yup! If none of you gets to the tower, you're disqualified. If a team member becomes incapacitated and is unable to continue, you're disqualified. But most important rule of all: Do not, by any circumstance, open the scrolls."

Naruto's interest was awoken. "Huh? Why not? I mean, what if I accidentally drop the scroll and it opens? You know, it can happen to anybody."

Anko gave the Kyuubi Jinchuriki a cheeky grin. "Let me put it this way: YOU DO NOT WANT TO OPEN THE SCROLLS. Was that clear enough for you?"

Yes, it was.

"Swell. Now sign your forms and exchange them for a scroll over there." Anko said as she pointed at a stand where three sentinels were waiting inside. "You have one hour to sign the forms. After that, the sentinels will point to you your gate number where you're supposed to wait for our call."

* * *

|Fifty five minutes later, Gate 16|

"Oi, Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, come over here." the golden-eyed boy called for his teammates.

"What is it?"

"I've been thinking about a plan that we could use at the start of the test." the Ozuma replied. "Look, this is a survival test. Team 7 specializes in fights, not surviving in the wild. We're also competing against other teams that have more experience than us. In other words, we're at disadvantage. We need to set things straight from the start." Shujinko faced Sasuke. "Sasuke, you and I will be the team leaders. We're the ones in charge of keeping this party going. Also, I think you should be the one keeping the scroll safe. Are you in?"

Sasuke said nothing, but replied with a curt nod of his head. It really was the safest option. Sakura was a medic, not a fighter. She lacked leadership and fighting prowess. Naruto was... Naruto. He could fight alright, but his brash behavior and overall lack of brain could lead to disaster. Not to mention, he wouldn't be caught dead taking orders from the dobe.

"Good. Sakura, as the team's medic, we have to protect you at all costs. If one of us gets injured, you're the only one who can patch us up. Remember what Anko said: If a team member is unable to continue due to injuries, we all get disqualified. That's why I don't want you to participate in any fight if it can be helped, because if we lose you, we'll be unable to heal ourselves properly. I trust in you, and so does Sasuke and Naruto."

The pinkette saw the logic behind Shujinko's argument and nodded. Over time, she learned that there were certain scenarios were she could help and other scenarios where she couldn't. She wanted to help her team in any way she could, but it was rather clear that she wasn't a soldier like Naruto, Sasuke and Shujinko. Besides, her medic training took almost all of her time, so she only managed to keep her offensive skills at an average level. In all honesty, she was a better healer than fighter, and she could live with that. Furthermore, considering the kind of luck Team 7 had, her medical skills were probably going to be required.

"Last, but not least. Naruto, you're definitely a key player. You have more chakra and stamina than either of us. In fact, I'm willing to bet that you have more chakra than any participant out there, which is why I need you to listen to me and Sasuke. With your shadow clones, we have leverage against the other teams. I need you to use them to provide protection for us. You think you can do that?"

The Uzumaki was slightly miffed that he wasn't chose team captain, but decided not to let it get to him. He knew Shujinko was smart and that he would never do anything that would hurt his friends, at least not intentionally. Even though he would never say it out loud, he knew next to nothing when it came to surviving in the wild. Heck, no member of Team 7 did. But for some reason, things always got done when Shujinko was in charge... even if they had to go through several life-threatening experiences. In the end, he decided to go with the flow and let Shujinko handle things for now. "Right! I'll stomp on anyone who tries to take our scroll! We'll reach the tower in no time!"

Shujinko was pleased by his team's willingness to cooperate. It was no easy job to get Naruto and Sasuke to work together, but when they did, they displayed great teamwork. He still had his doubts regarding Sakura, but he recognized hard work when he saw it, and Sakura had given her all in the past two months. As for himself, he had also trained like crazy with his Kekkei Genkai. It was time to show everyone what he was made off. "Naruto, I want you to create sixteen shadow clones as soon as the doors are opened. We four will go in a straight line while your clones surround us. That way, they'll work as a one-hit shield and they may also sacrifice themselves if we get ambushed. Our formation will be like this: Me first, Sasuke second, Sakura third and Naruto fourth."

"Why should you go first?" Sasuke questioned.

"With the Karura Tensei, my eyesight increases considerably. If there's someone nearby, I might be able to catch sight of him first." Shujinko replied as he sat down and brought his palms together in order to gather all of the nature chakra he could. He didn't tell his teammates that he could also recognize the presence of chakra within a certain radius while on Sage Mode. He made sure to identify the chakra of Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura to the best of his abilities. That way, if an impostor tried to fool them by using a Henge, he wouldn't fall for it.

"Ne, Shujinko, what are you doing?" Naruto asked.

"I'll explain later." was Shujinko's answer. He needed to focus if he wanted to gather as much nature chakra as he could. Activating the Karura Tensei without gathering chakra beforehand shortened the time he could keep his Sage Mode activated. His answer to Naruto wasn't exactly satisfactory, but he really didn't felt like explaining him his Kekkei Genkai or how Senjutsu worked. After five minutes, he finally opened his eyes, revealing big black pupils and yellow Irises.

"W-Woah! Shujinko, your eyes! They are... I mean, those lines behind... What the heck is that!?" Naruto sputtered, his eyes threatening to pop out of their place as his mouth hanged open.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "It's his Kekkei Genkai, dobe."

Naruto faced the raven-haired boy with a scowl. "I already knew that, teme! I just... I've never seen him like that before." And that was true. Shujinko trained his Kekkei Genkai alone where he wouldn't be bothered by his screeching fangirls. "So, what does it do?"

"Lots of things, but there's no time to explain it. It's almost time to start. Look, the sentinel is already unlocking the gates." Shujinko said as he pointed at the sentinel that was guarding Gate 16. The sentinel was pulling out the chains that kept the gate locked, and the members of Team 7 gulped. It was happening. The second stage of the Chunin Exams were happening. There was no going back now.

...

"Aaaaand... GO!"

Team 7 immediately started running in the pre-established formation, the Ozuma leading the vanguard. "Naruto, now!"

"Right! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Sixteen Narutos came into existence and surrounded Team 7.

As they made their way through the forest, Shujinko started thinking about what they had to do besides getting a scroll and reaching the tower. 'First, we need to find shelter. That's definitely going to be tricky. There are other teams out there so we can't select an obvious spot. Second, if what that Anko lady told us was true, there must be plenty of food for us if we know where to find it... which we don't. That doesn't worry me as much as the water. We don't know how many rivers there are, and we can't expect to go five days straight without water. What's more, a river is a perfect place to set up a trap. I only have a couple of emergency ration bars and one water bottle with me, so finding food and a place to rest are our top priority for now. Oh, and we also need to take turns to sleep. Otherwise we might get killed without even knowing it... (mental sigh) This is gonna be troublesome. Oh great, now I'm imitating Shikamaru.'

|Thirty minutes later|

"Alright, so far so good." the golden-eyed boy commented as his Kekkei Genkai faded away. They reached a clearing in the forest where they could rest without drawing too much attention on themselves. "We should make a stop here. We've been running from the start of the exam. If we lose our breath, we won't be able to fight back."

Naruto dispelled the clones and started squirming a little while shakily closing the gap between his legs. "That sounds great. I really need to use the bathroom... or forest... or whatever!" he said as he approached a tree nearby (as in teen ft. away from them). He was about to 'take care of his little business' but Sakura bopped his head hard before he could unzip his pants.

"You pig! You're not gonna do that in front of me! Find a bush or something!"

"Geez, ok! You don't have to hit me that hard, Sakura-chan!"

"Guys, keep it down!" Shujinko hushed them with a loud whisper and an annoyed look. "There are other teams around, you know."

"Right..." Naruto said as he walked away from them. Team 7 waited for their blond teammate for a while, and both Shujinko and Sasuke noticed that Naruto was taking just a little too long. The clearing that they were in was still surrounded by a lot of trees so it wasn't like Naruto had to completely hide himself or something.

Shujinko was starting to get worried, but then Naruto appeared out of the bushes.

"Man, I really needed that. I even managed to write my full name!"

Sakura's eye twitched. "Naruto, you're disgusting."

Whatever it was that Naruto had to say, it was never spoken. Sasuke punched Naruto in the face and sent him a few meters away. Shujinko instantly took out a kunai, but was unsure whom he had to confront. Was Sasuke merely punishing Naruto? That seemed a little harsh. Even Sakura thought it was a little too much. "S-Sasuke-kun, that wasn't necessary."

"On the contrary, it was quite necessary." Sasuke replied as he glared at the whiskered boy. "I have no idea who you are, but you're obviously not Naruto. Show yourself, coward."

'Naruto' stood up and returned the glare. "What are you talking about, Sasuke!? Of course I'm Naruto! Who the hell I'm supposed to be if not me!?"

"Is that so? Then where's the cut on your left cheek? And why are you wearing your kunai holster on your left leg when Naruto is right handed? Your Henge is even lamer than the dobe's."

The Ozuma activated the Karura Tensei and briefly inspected his 'teammate's' chakra signature. Sasuke was right, there was no way that chakra could be Naruto's. It was way too small and precise to belong to the Uzumaki. That, and something else. "This guy can't be Naruto. His chakra is completely different." he stated before deactivating his Kekkei Genkai. He couldn't keep it up for more than a minute after spending the last half hour using it. "What's more, Naruto calls Sasuke 'teme'. You obviously haven't done all of your homework."

'Naruto's' mouth twitched a little before becoming a cruel smirk. "You have sharp eyes." the impostor said with his real voice as he dropped the Henge, revealing a teen from Amegakure wearing a beige jumpsuit and some sort of strange gas mask that altered his voice. "It doesn't matter; I'm still taking your scroll. Now, which one of you has it?"

Shujinko replied by throwing shurikens at him. The Ame nin dodged them all and draw two daggers out of his holsters, approaching Shujinko while he was at it. The brown-haired boy replied in kind and charged against his enemy with two kunais of his own. But before they could clash against one another, Shujinko jumped over him and threw his weapons while he was at it. The masked teen turned around and deflected the incoming kunais with his daggers. "Sakura, I'll hold him off! Go find Naruto!"

"H-Hai!" Sakura shouted before running away.

Gaining some distance, Shujinko started weaving handsigns. "Fuuton: Daitopa!" he shouted, a powerful gust of wind making an entrance against the Ame nin. This time, the teen wasn't fast enough to dodge the jutsu and was sent back a few meters.

While this was happening, Sasuke was also waving handsigns. "Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!"

Shooting projectiles out of his mouth, the Uchiha attempted to hit his target, who managed to evade all of the incoming fire projectiles. Once he was done dodging, the Ame nin looked up and saw a Fuuma Shuriken going his way. He smirked (not that one could notice because of the mask he was wearing) and jumped up in the air. "You can't hope to beat me with your pathetic little tricks!"

"Says you!"

The masked teen looked up and, before he knew it, he was sent back to the ground, making a loud THUD noise. Shujinko looked up and saw Naruto along with four shadow clones holding the semi-unconscious foe. He smirked at the sight.

"About time you showed up, dobe." Sasuke said with a bored look.

"Shut up! It's not my fault that he got behind my back!"

Shujinko sweat-dropped. 'It kind of is.'

After making sure their attacker wasn't waking up anytime soon, Sasuke used some ninja wire to tie him up to a tree so he wouldn't escape. Over the last two months, Sasuke started to train with ninja wire, a special tool that went along perfect with the use of his Sharingan since it enabled him to calculate their trajectory when they were attached to shurikens. If that wasn't enough, the Uchiha clan used to be famous because of their weapon-throwing skills. In other words, an Uchiha with the Sharingan could do nasty things with a wire-attached shuriken. "Shujinko, look for his pouch. Maybe he has a scroll or something that can be of use." The Uchiha ordered.

Shujinko did as told and removed the big pouch out of the teen's unconscious body. "Let's see here. He has some daggers, a couple of shurikens, three ration bars, a water bottle, a little bit of poison and... Bingo." he said with a big smile. It was an Earth scroll, just the thing they were looking for. "Looks like this guy thought we couldn't take him down, so he didn't bother to hand his scroll to his teammates. Oh well, their loss."

"Did you hear that, you masked creep? That's what you get for attacking me while I was peeing!" the Kyuubi Jinchuriki proclaimed out loud.

"We're wasting time here. Let's go." Sasuke said.

"Wait a minute! What are we supposed to do with him?" Naruto asked as he pointed at the Ame nin.

The golden-eyed boy answered. "We leave him here, Naruto. We can't take the risk of him getting back at us. His teammates must be wondering where he is right now and we have to avoid unnecessary conflict. We already have the scrolls, so we should go to the tower right now and be done with this."

Naruto didn't seem satisfied by the answer. Sure, the Ame nin attacked him while taking a leak and tried to take their scroll, but leaving him here seemed plain cruel. He knew Shujinko was right, he knew that they shouldn't take risks, but even so... "But what if his teammates don't find him? What if some scary and hungry predators find him first?"

"I know it seems cruel, but he's not gonna die." Shujinko replied while trying to sound confident, as if the chance of the masked boy dying was nonexistent. "He'll be found either by the sentinels or his teammates. And we're not so deep inside the forest, so there aren't any predators around here. Besides, do you really think he would do the same for you? He would've probably killed you after dealing with us. If anything, we're being merciful." Once again, Naruto didn't seem satisfied, but nodded reluctantly. If that was the only way of ensuring their escape without having to kill the teen... then he would put up with it even if he didn't like it in the slightest. "I'll keep the Earth scroll. It's not wise to place all the eggs in one basket. Ok, let's go."

* * *

"What happened earlier is proof that we can't trust anyone but ourselves." Sasuke started to say as Team 7 kneeled and listened to the Uchiha heir. "We have to come up with a way to prove that we are who we say we are."

The others nodded in agreement. "Do you have a plan, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked.

"We need a password, one that only we can answer."

"That's a good idea, but we should also ask questions that only we know. Personal stuff from our past." Shujinko said. "If another ninja happens to hear our password, then he can easily fool us. Let's stick with the password for now, though."

Sasuke nodded. "Listen up because I'm only going to say it once. The question will be: When does a ninja strike? And the answer is: A ninja waits until the time is right, when the enemy sleeps and drops his guard. When his weapons lay forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is when a ninja strike."

Sakura smiled in triumph. She remembered that quote from the Academy when they were still kids. Of course her Sasuke-kun would come up with something that ingenious. "I got it."

"Teme, can't you just pick a different password? It's sounds like a speech or something." Naruto complained with a pouty look.

"Quiet, dobe. That's the password. In any case, we should get going. There's no telling who many-"

Sasuke couldn't finish his sentence. A powerful gust of wind came out of nowhere, dismantling Team 7. Sakura was pushed straight back while Naruto and Shujinko were pushed back right and left in a horizontal fashion. Sasuke managed to avoid the majority of the impact, but he was still pushed back. He instantly went to hide within the bushes, kunai in hand and Sharingan blazing.

"You two go wander around. I will handle this." a (barely) feminine voice was heard.

|Meanwhile, with Shujinko|

'The hell was that?' Shujinko wondered as he silently searched for his teammates. 'There's no way that was a normal gust of wind. It was more like an over-powered Fuuton: Daitopa. Someone saw us, that's for sure. Maybe it's the team from that Ame nin? If that's the case, then they certainly caught on quickly.'

Fortunately, he arrived just in time to see Sasuke asking Sakura for the password. "A ninja waits until the time is right, when the enemy sleeps and drops his guard. When his weapons lay forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is when a ninja strike." Sakura recited with textbook accuracy, as it was expected from her.

"Good." Sasuke replied while lowering his kunai.

Sakura was the first one to notice Shujinko. "Hold it there! What's the password?" she asked as she grabbed a handful of shurikens. Sasuke tensed and draw his kunais again.

"A ninja waits until the time is right, when the enemy sleeps and drops his guard. When his weapons lay forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is when a ninja strike." Shujinko replied, making sure to pronounce every vocal as clearly as he could.

"So it is you." Sakura sighed with relief.

"Wait, he might've heard you, Sakura." Sasuke interrupted as he took a step forward. "Answer me this: Who won in our first spar?"

Shujinko blinked. "Huh?"

"Our first spar, who won it?"

"... Neither of us did. I called it a draw."

This time, Sasuke did lower his guard. Their spar sessions were private and neither him or Shujinko boosted about them in class, so there was no way another one knew about their scores. After all, Shujinko was anything but a bragger. "Have you seen Naruto?"

"Oi, guys! I'm right here! Are you ok?"

Sakura, Sasuke and Shujinko turned around to see Naruto heading their way. Shujinko instantly unsealed his Fuuma Shuriken as he narrowed his eyes. "Don't move! Tell us the password."

"The password?" Naruto asked with a confused look, only to smile sheepishly afterwards. "Right, I got it. Uhmmm, a ninja waits until the time is right, when the enemy sleeps and drops his guard. When his weapons lay forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is when a ninja strike. See? I know the password alright!"

"I'm not finished. The Naruto I know is an expert on clone techniques. If you're really Naruto, then you should do seven regular clones without breaking a sweat. Do it... if you're really Naruto." Shujinko challenged.

"Seven regular clones? Alright, but this is stupid." Naruto said before doing several handsigns. "Bunshin no Jutsu!" the whiskered boy said and seven clones came into existence. "Are you happy now?"

The Uchiha and the Ozuma shared a look. This guy was definitely not Naruto. When they discussed the password, it was obvious that Naruto couldn't remember it due to its extensiveness and his natural lack of focus. Naruto even asked for a shorter one, so it made no sense that he could remember it all of a sudden. Just to make sure, Shujinko asked 'Naruto' to perform the Bunshin no Jutsu, a technique he could never get right. Back in their Academy days, he couldn't even do a single regular clone, and now this impostor was doing seven of them. However this guy was, he most certainly wasn't Konoha's Number One Hyperactive, Knucklehead Ninja. Without any sort of warning, Shujinko jumped back and threw a couple of shurikens at the impersonator, who smoothly managed to dodge them by jumping to the left.

"What the hell!? You could've killed me! Are you nuts or what!?"

"Shujinko, what are you doing!?" Sakura exclaimed in shock. "He said the password and did the Bunshin no Jutsu like you asked him to do!"

"Exactly, and that's the problem." the brown-haired boy replied. "The Naruto I know couldn't have remembered that password in such a short amount of time. And if that wasn't enough, he created seven regular clones with ease. We're not talking about the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, we're talking about the normal Bunshin no Jutsu, the technique we were taught by Iruka-sensei. Tell me, has Naruto ever managed to do a single copy right? No, he hasn't. There's no way this guy can be our teammate."

Now that she thought about it, it made sense. Sakura mentally chastised herself for not keeping up with her teammates. Even if she was a decent medic considering her age, it was clear that she still had a long way to go before she could finally call herself an independent kunoichi. She was making mistakes that could very well end her life and the lives of those around her.

"Alright, drop the Henge and tell us where's out teammate, whoever you are." Sasuke demanded with a glare.

'Naruto' licked his lips with an unnaturally long tongue. "Very cunning, indeed. It is good to see that you are not as dim-witted as your other teammate." POOF. The cloud of smoke vanished. Shujinko's eyes widened a bit as he recognized the person that tried to fool them. It was that shemale from before, the one whom Anko warned not to get on her back again under threat of death. The Kusa nin pulled out an Earth scroll and started taunting the three Genins. "Look what I have here. I bet you would love to get your hands on this Earth scroll, wouldn't you? It would go perfect with your Heaven scroll."

'So she doesn't know we have an Earth scroll already. That's good.' Shujinko thought as he carefully reached for the scroll that contained his Fuuma Shuriken.

Shujinko then saw something that made him lose his composure. The ninja from Kusagakure grabbed the scroll with her tongue and SHOVED THE ENTIRE THING DOWN HER THROAT. She didn't even chew it or anything, she simply swallowed it. If that wasn't bizarre enough, she then licked her lips as if she was done eating something delicious. "One thing is certain." she started to say, drool coming out of her mouth. "When this is over, one of us will have two scrolls... and the other will be dead."

'No... There's no way this can be real. That wasn't a jutsu, she... she just swallowed an entire scroll! No, this has to be an illusion.' the Ozuma started breathing heavily, ice flowing through his veins instead of blood. There was something unnerving about that... monster he was looking at. The mere thought of standing close to her was disgusting, repugnant, and gruesome. He shakily brought his hands together and performed the Ram hand sign. "Kai!" he said, waiting for the Genjutsu to dispel. Nothing happened. That dreadful feeling was not only still there, but it was increasing. 'This... This is not a Genjutsu. She truly is that abominable.'

The snake-like gave Shujinko a smile so creepy that it made him want to puke. "I assure you, you are not under a Genjutsu. It just happens that you are scared, like a small rodent about to get devoured."

Not wanting to look at her for another second, Shujinko gritted his teeth and started weaving a set of hand signs. Boar, Horse, Ox, Rat, Serpent, Rat. "Fuuton: Daifuuburo no Jutsu!" he shouted before exhaling a sharp gust of wind towards her. The kunoichi merely raised two fingers and sent a gust of wind of her own, with the exception that hers was a lot stronger. Before he could realize what was going on, Shujinko was sent back 30 fts. away, bouncing two times on the ground until his back made contact with a tree.

The golden-eyed boy yelped in pain as he felt blood coming out of the corners of his mouth. He looked at his stomach and noticed several cuts on his torso and legs. 'Incredible. She didn't even had to weave hand signs to make a wind jutsu stronger than mine. I don't think I can match that level, not even in Sage Mode. She's strong, maybe too strong for a Genin.'

"Shujinko!" Sakura yelled.

"Now, let me see how much resistance you can offer." the Kusa nin said before unleashing her killing intent mixed with some Genjutsu.

The next couple of seconds were one of the worst moments for the Uchiha and the Haruno. Their vision became blurry for a fraction of a second and, out of nowhere, images of their deaths started to hit them like an avalanche. They say their bodies mutilated, covered in blood and mud. Their screams were echoing all throughout the forest. Time after time after time, their bodies hit the ground with a kunai nailed on their foreheads, their stomachs, their legs, their arms, and just about every part of their bodies. It was futile to scream, for their voices were stuck inside their throats. Even though the illusion only lasted for about half a minute, it felt like an eternity for the couple, and when the horrific images came to an end, Sasuke and Sakura fell on their knees like tired toddlers. The Uchiha started vomiting his insides out while Sakura just sat there, crying silent tears shaking like a leaf in the wind.

"Sakura! Sasuke!" Shujinko shouted as he tried to get up, which resulted in him dropping to his knees as well. 'Damn it, I'm still hurt! But they're in a worse shape than me! I don't know what sort of Genjutsu that woman put them through, but it was obviously terrifying. I have to do something!'

Slowly, very slowly, Sasuke started to get up. He was paralyzed in fear, but his preservation instincts were kicking in. There was a voice inside his head that was screaming 'move or die', and he had no intention of dying today, or any day until he fulfilled his revenge against Itachi. He looked at his kunai holster and had a wild idea, one that might save his life and Sakura's.

He was going to replace fear with hot pain.

The Kusa nin pulled out two kunais and smiled. "Excellent, you are still able to stand up. But can you move? I suppose we will find out soon enough, won't we?"

Two kunais were thrown.

Sasuke tightened his grip on his kunai.

The two kunais were getting closer.

Sasuke held his kunai close to his leg.

The two kunais were close...

'Move, Sasuke! MOVE!'

Using every ounce of will he still had, Sasuke stabbed his own leg. The pain he felt allowed him to momentarily forget how frightened he was and, taking advantage of the sudden rush of adrenaline, he was able to dodge the incoming kunai, grab Sakura and flee. The Kusa nin was mildly surprised by Sasuke's idea, but saw the logic behind it. "Quite a desperate move... but a clever one." she acknowledged. She then looked at the spot where the brown-haired boy was supposed to be.

There was no boy. Instead, there was a log of wood.

Kawarimi no Jutsu.

"Instead of moving on his own, he replaced himself with a log of wood in order to escape... Khu hku khu, my preys aren't as helpless as I first thought."

* * *

Let's stop things here, shall we?

I have to say, I didn't find this chapter to be as satisfying as the others. I don't know what it is, but it just seems a little 'meh' to me. The second exams will probably take place in 4-6 chapters including this one of course. What I really want to do is write Shujinko's fight in the preliminaries. Tell me, with whom should I pair him with? The way I see it, I can only pair him with either Kabuto (which means he won't forfeit before the start of the preliminaries) or include another team integrated by three OC's. Drop a review with whom should he be paired with and I'll go with the idea that convinces me the most.

Review, Favorite and Follow.

Ja ne!


	19. Chapter 19

**CHAPTER 19: SHARINGAN, SENJUTSU AND SANNIN**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

Shujinko leaned against a tree, placing a hand on his chest as he attempted to ease the pounding sensation inside his chest.

That woman, that... demon, was quickly replacing his worst fears. He truly felt like a prey escaping from its predator. He was afraid that he would get caught if he breathed too fast, but he simply couldn't breathe slowly, or else he would lose his consciousness. The first time he experienced killing intent like that, it was back at the Mission to Nami no Kuni, when Team 7 first fought Zabuza while protecting Tazuna. However, it was only because Kakashi had been with them that they were able to fight back. Sure, he stood his own against Haku without the aid of his sensei, but he had help from Sasuke and Naruto and, what was probably more important, Haku wasn't cruel or sadistic like the snake freak that was onto them right now. Haku only wanted them to surrender in order to avoid further conflict. But that woman? That woman was hunting them for her own amusement and taking joy from seeing them scared. Hell, Shujinko was pretty sure that she would feel disappointed if they gave up.

There was no Kakashi-sensei they could ask help from. They were completely on their own.

Looking to the left, he saw Sakura healing Sasuke's injury to the best of her abilities. The three of them were up on the tree branches, hoping to have gained some distance from the evil Kusa nin. Meanwhile, Shujinko grabbed one of his kunais and wrapped an exploding tag around the grip. That woman could be anywhere near them and he had to be ready. He had to survive...

"Sasuke-kun, watch out!" Out of nowhere, a gigantic appeared and tried to eat them. Sakura and Sasuke managed to evade the creature just in time by jumping onto another tree branch that was nearby.

"Stay away!" Sasuke shouted as he threw several shurikens at the beast.

Shujinko saw the opportunity and threw his kunai that had the exploding tag. He missed his target but activated the exploding tag nonetheless. The snake was caught up in the explosion and dropped dead on the ground with a hole near its head. However, even though the snake was dead, it seemed to be regurgitating something out of its mouth. A slimy figure came out, and Shujinko was shocked once he recognized the individual. It was the very same Kusa nin they were hiding from. 'Sh-She just came out of the snake's mouth. How can she do that? What sort of monster is she?'

"Khu khu khu, I can sense your fear. It is something to expect. After all, what sort of prey is not fearful when facing its predator?" the shemale asked rhetorically, She was about to launch at them, but then a voice was heard loud and clear.

"Hey you! Stop it right there, snake freak!"

Team 7 recognized that voice. It was Naruto, who was standing on another tree branch with his arms crossed and a defiant look on his face.

"Naruto, don't try to attack her!" Shujinko yelled at his teammate. Even if he was immensely relieved to see his friend, there was no time to waste. Naruto had no idea how powerful she was. "I don't know who she is, but she's hardly human! You have no idea what she's capable off!"

The snake freak looked amused. "So you managed to escape from my little pet? You are stronger than I thought."

"You better believe I'm strong! My name is Uzumaki Naruto, and you're gonna pay for attacking my friends!"

"Naruto, listen to me!" Shujinko growled out of frustration. "You're not going to fight her! You'll end up getting yourself killed! The only thing we can do right now is head over to the tower and warn the proctors about her!"

The Uzumaki was about to retort, but Sasuke's voice came first. "... You can have it." he said out of the blue while his Sharingan faded away. The rest of Team 7 stared at him in confusion, not really understanding what he was talking about. Pulling out the Heaven scroll out of his pouch, Sasuke elaborated. "The Heaven scroll, you can have it. We'll give it to you and you'll leave us alone."

"What!?" Naruto exclaimed in shock. "No way! We're not handing out our scroll to that weird lady!"

"Yes, we are!" the Uchiha shouted even louder. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into, so shut up for once, usuratonkachi!"

Shujinko decided to intervene. "Sasuke, wait! There's no point on giving her our scroll!"

"What do you mean there's no point? She's simply too strong for us to handle and you know it!"

"That's exactly what I'm talking about! Don't you get it? I don't care from what village she's from, there's no way someone that strong is still a Genin! She's even more powerful than Zabuza! This is child's play for her, she could've killed us and taken our scroll a long time ago! The only reason why we're still alive is because she's messing with us! And besides, do you really think she'll leave us alone after giving her our scroll, just like that? She'll try to kill us anyway!"

Sasuke's eyes widened. He never considered before if there was an ulterior motive behind her attack. The more he thought about it, the more sense it made. Someone with the kind of power level displayed by that woman simply couldn't be a mere Genin trying to pass the Chunin Exams. Her techniques, her killing intent, her sadism, there was simply nothing about her that matched the picture of a Genin. So why was he still considering handing out their Heaven scroll?

Because he was scared. That woman terrified him like no other foe before. Compared to her, Zabuza was like a gentleman. His killing intent had nothing on hers. He was an avenger, and as such, he needed to survive in order to claim revenge on the one who destroyed his life. But that woman's strength was something he had never seen before, and she was jeopardizing his entire future. She would kill him here and he would never be able to fulfill his greatest desire: To see the corpse of Itachi rotting on the ground. If he had to choose between losing his life alongside everything he worked for and losing a scroll, then he would go for option A without a second thought.

"... I'll take my chances." he declared as he tossed the white scroll to the Kusa nin. But before the scroll could be delivered, Naruto jumped out of his spot and grabbed the scroll while in mid-air. "Damn it, Naruto! Stop playing hero and start using your brain! She will-"

Before anything else could be said, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki punched Sasuke across his face... hard. "Shut up! Don't you dare say anything else, impostor!"

"Impostor!? What the hell are you talking about, Naruto!?" Shujinko barked. "He is Sasuke!"

"No! I refuse to believe that! You might look like him and you might sound like him, but the Sasuke I know... is not a coward! I don't give a crap how hard you fought, the Sasuke I know would never ever surrender! You can keep acting cool all you want, but I know what's going on with you! You're scared to death! But you know what? Forget it. If you're not man enough to face your fears, then I'll have to do it for you!"

With that said, Naruto charged against the Kusa nin, who bit her thumb hard enough to squeeze blood which she used to draw a line over some sort of tribal tattoo on her left forearm. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu." she said before creating a gust of wind strong enough to push Naruto back. An enormous cloud of smoke appeared, and inside the smoke there was a snake even bigger than the last one. "I strongly recommend you to be careful. This one likes to play with his food."

The snake used his tail to break the big branch on which Naruto was standing on. The blond Genin had barely enough time to jump away, but while he was in mid-air, the snake's tail struck a second time and he wasn't able to evade it. The Uzumaki was sent back a few meters away before his back crashed against a tree, knocking him out.

"Naruto!" Shujinko shouted as he pulled out a kunai and threw it to the snake freak. 'Let's hope this works.' "Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Six other kunais appeared out of the original in a horizontal fashion, all of them pointing at the kunoichi from Kusagakure. Said kunoichi merely used her thumb and index finger to stop the original kunai dead in its track while the others faded away upon contact. She gave Shujinko a small smirk. "An amusing little jutsu, if only far too simple."

The golden-eyed boy gritted his teeth a little, even though he couldn't really say he expected his jutsu to work like a charm against an opponent of her caliber.

"Now, I believe it is time for the predator to have its pray."

 **"Oh yeah?.."** Naruto asked as he shakily stood up. He then looked at the shemale with a glare worthy of an outraged beast. **"Come and get me!"**

Shujinko let out a gasp when he saw Naruto's face. His cerulean eyes were now red and his pupils transformed into slits. His whiskers were also thicker than usual. 'No... It's happening again! Naruto is under the Kyuubi's influence!' he mentally shouted as he involuntarily took a step back. He had only seen him like that once, and even though he didn't seem completely out of himself like he was against Haku, he definitely looked dangerous. With a speed that was not his own, Naruto launched himself forward and literally began smacking the snake on its head. What was even more unbelievable was the brute strength behind his fists. The giant snake was actually feeling pain, and even the psychotic kunoichi looked bewildered.

He wasn't the only one with a shocked look on his face. Sasuke was staring at his teammate with his mouth hanging open. He simply couldn't believe the boldness and ferocity displayed by Naruto. 'What happened to him? What sort of power is that?'

Eventually, the snake freak's curiosity got the better of her and used her unholy large tongue to stop Naruto from further beating her beast. **"Hey, let me go! Let me go or I swear I'll yank your tongue out of your mouth!"** Naruto demanded as he struggled to move. Moving him closer to her while ignoring his threats and insults, the Kusa nin used the tip of her tongue to lift Naruto's jacket. Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of the seal appearing on his stomach.

The next thing that happened left Shujinko completely aghast. The Kusa nin lifted her right hand and her fingertips started burning in purple chakra. Then, she buried her palm deep inside the Uzumaki's guts. "Gogyoo Fuuin!" Naruto suddenly stopped struggling and calmed himself. Well, he didn't exactly calm himself, more like he lost his consciousness. His entire body went limp like a rag doll and the shemale tossed him away before stealing the Heaven scroll.

"Naruto!" Sakura screamed as she watched how Naruto fell to the ground with horror. "Sasuke-kun, do something!" she pleaded to the raven-haired boy, who was still far too shocked and unnerved to respond, let alone react. 'There's no way he's gonna survive that fall!' Luckily, Shujinko still had a hold of his senses and caught his teammate before he could turn into a human sticker. The Haruno let out a sigh of relieved before addressing Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun, what's wrong with you? We are in danger and you're doing nothing!" When he didn't respond, Sakura decided that enough was enough. "Ok, say whatever you want about Naruto! Call him a loser! Call him an idiot! Call him a nuisance! But at least... But at least he's not a coward!"

Shujinko couldn't help but stare at Sakura in awe. He never would've thought Sakura would ever call her beloved Sasuke-kun a coward, not in a million years. 'But she's right. I've never seen Sasuke this paralyzed before. If he doesn't reacts now, he'll get killed... and so will Sakura and I... No! I won't allow things to end like this!' "Sasuke, snap out of it! Don't you want to revive your clan? Don't you want to grow strong enough to kill that man? You're always talking about the strength of the Uchiha clan, and now it's time for you to prove it! If you keep running away like a frightened rabbit, she'll kill you and the Uchiha clan will be no more! DEAD PEOPLE CAN'T AVENGE ANYONE, SASUKE!" He knew he was being harsh, he knew he had no right to say those kinds of things after everything that happened to him. But it really was the only way to make him open his eyes and face the reality of the situation. If calling him out on his clan was what it took to get him to fight, he'd do it again without hesitation.

They had to kill her or she would kill them.

"No... No! NO!" Sasuke shouted as he violently shook his head. When he brought his face up, Shujinko couldn't help but smile a little. His Sharingan was activated and his face was the living embodiment of determination. That... was the Sasuke he knew. The Kusa nin smirked and 'un-summoned' the giant snake she was riding.

Gently leaving Naruto on the ground, he addressed Sakura before joining Sasuke. "Sakura, take care of Naruto and heal him as much as you can. Sasuke and I will deal with this snake freak." With that said, Shujinko slowly made his way towards the Uchiha and stood alongside him. If he was destined to be killed today, then at least he was going to give it his all. Was he scared? Hell yes. Did he want to run away? Of course he did. Was there any chance he could escape from her if he left now? Maybe. So why wasn't he doing it? Why wasn't he leaving his comrades behind?

Because those who did that were worse than scum, that's why.

'Karura Tensei.' Shujinko mentally said as he entered Sage Mode. The two top students of the class were about to face their greatest opponent. Both of them had their shurikens ready.

"So you two have finally decided to take me on? How wonderful." the Kusa nin taunted. "Please, do try and make my time worth the while."

…

'It's time.'

The two Genins ran towards their enemy, who raised two fingers and sent a strong gust of wind. The both of them jumped and threw the shurikens they had ready before reaching a tree branch. The Kusa nin merely moved her head left and right, successfully avoiding getting her head decorated with metal stars. Sasuke and Shujinko jumped out of their respective tree branches in unison and started attacking the shemale with everything they had, kicking, punching, docking, blocking and dodging for their lives. Their combined attacks were apparently enough to get her on her toes as she was also forced to block and dodge, but Shujinko knew this wasn't the full extent of her power. She was warming up and he knew it.

Case in point, they weren't able to score any significant damage on her. Even when they attacked at the same time, she always found a way to block them. The Karura Tensei proved to be an invaluable asset in the fight. With his empowered eyesight and reflexes, Shujinko was able to evade most of the kunoichi's attacks. Whenever he couldn't dodge, he used his arms to block any incoming punch or kick that came his way. Sasuke also took advantage of his Sharingan by predicting her moves. He may not have as good reflexes as his teammate, but when you had eyes that saw the future, it didn't really bother you that much.

Eventually, Shujinko decided to go for a slightly bolder approach. When her right fist came near his head, Shujinko stopped it with his palm and grabbed her wrist with his free hand, making sure to use all of his strength so she couldn't take her hand back. When the Kusa nin attempted to kick him with her right leg, Sasuke saw an opportunity and immediately decided to for for her left leg, the one that she was standing on. Realizing what the boys were trying to do, the Kusa nin used her left leg to jump over them and get behind their backs. Sasuke and Shujinko turned around just to see their opponent moving at a ridiculous speed. Despite all the visual enhancements that came with the Karura Tensei, Shujinko was only able to see a blurry... thing, moving around them. Her face could very well be a potato and he wouldn't be able to spot the difference.

Instead of relying on his eyes, Shujinko was more focused on her chakra signature. Sages were able to sense their surroundings and the movement that took place within a certain radius, so even if she could fool his eyes, there was no way she could hide her chakra, at least not while she was moving. 'Come on, come on... Now!'

Shujinko managed to jump back just in time before the Kusa nin could reach him, throwing his Fuuma Shuriken at her and bringing his palms together. "Fuuton: Repuushoo!" he called as a strong gale of wind caused the weapon to spin even faster, thus increasing its lethality. It didn't work, however, as the disturbing kunoichi disappeared out of sight. According to her chakra signature, she was moving beneath the ground. "Sasuke, she's-!"

"I know!" Sasuke interrupted. The Kusa nin rose from beneath the ground near Sasuke and tried to grab him, but Sasuke jumped back to a tree branch with Shujinko following him. While in midair, Shujinko threw a couple of kunais at her, but she dodged them all and allowed them to imbed themselves into the ground. She jumped and landed on the same tree branch Shujinko and Sasuke were on and slowly walked her way towards them, her smile never faltering.

Shujinko had an idea. He reached for his pouch and grabbed a handful of smoke bombs. When the snake-like woman was close to them, he threw them to the ground in front of him and started weaving hand signs. Tiger, Ox, Dog, Rabbit, Snake. "Fuuton: Daitoppa!" The thick smoke was pushed forward, forcing the woman to stop and cover her eyes. Raising her hands up in the air, the Kusa nin cleared the smoke by sending a gust of wind. Shujinko and Sasuke, however, were nowhere to be seen. The next thing she knew, her neck snapped with a loud CRACK noise. Sasuke took advantage of Shujinko's distraction to get out of her sight and attack her from behind, pushing her out of the tree branch with him and making sure to land with his right foot against her neck.

Sasuke stared at the corpse of his enemy, feeling a mixture of relief and uncertainness. This was his first kill, after all. He felt strange touching her body... it felt as if it was made out of clay, not flesh and bones. His eyes widened in shock when he saw her body starting to decompose, her limbs, head and torso suddenly turning into mud. 'Kawarimi?'

Yes, Kawarimi indeed.

A barrage of kunais was thrown at him out of nowhere, and Sasuke ended up receiving a rather deep cut on his right arm. Ignoring the pain to the best of his abilities, Sasuke climbed up a tree until he reached a huge branch where he could hide. He heard footsteps near him, and when he turned around, the Kusa nin was already there. Not even his Sharingan was able to anticipate the pain he would feel when the kunoichi struck him across his face with a right hook, or the pain in his right ribs when she kicked him there, or the pain in his entire body when she kept going with the brutal beating. Eventually, the shemale grew bored and kicked the heir of the Uchiha clan a few meters away with the second landing with a loud THUD noise and unconscious.

"How pitiful. Is this truly the extent of your abilities? Your ancestors must be weeping." the snake-like lady taunted. She then heard the sound of a branch napping in two and smirked. Without even bothering to look behind, she did a horse-kick and sent the brown-haired boy crashing into the tree's trunk. "And this one as well. I suppose I have no other choice but to kill you and enjoy watching your blood paint the ground, just like stomping on a blood-sucking insect."

She failed to notice the brown-haired boy shakily raising two fingers.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM

The Kusa nin winced in pain and dropped to one knee, for the pain she was feeling in her back was far too severe. 'Powder bombs attached to my back? But when? Was it when... Of course, that boy with the golden eyes must've done it when he attacked me!' she then looked at Sasuke, who was jumping back and throwing string-attached shurikens around her. 'And this... This is a Sharingan Windmill Triple Attack! But that means he will also have to attack-' The Kusa Nin looked back at the tree one last time. There was no unconscious Genin there, but a log of wood with an exploding tag attached to it. Before she knew it, she was attached to the tree's trunk along with the log of wood.

"SASUKE, DO IT NOW!" Shujinko shouted as he summoned the rest of the Nature Chakra he had and brought his palms together. This was going to be a moment he would never forget even if he reached the age of one hundred. He was about to combine his strongest jutsu with Sasuke's.

"KATON: RYUUKA NO JUTSU!"

"FUUTON: DAI REPUUSHOO!"

The combination of both jutsus and the exploding tag that was attached to the log of wood resulted in the biggest explosion Shujinko had ever seen in his life. The stream of fire empowered by the gale of wind was enough to cover a considerable amount of terrain, and the exploding tag blew a fragment of the tree to splinters. When Shujinko looked up, he saw no remaining of the Kusa nin whatsoever. She was disintegrated to a molecular level.

Shujinko stared at the place where the shemale had once been. It took him a while to understand what he had just done.

He just killed someone. He just took away the life of a person (if you could call it that).

How was he feeling? Oh, if only you knew how much Shujinko wanted to answer that. He had absolutely no idea whether to feel sickened or relieved. If he had to say something, he would probably go with... confused. He was well-aware that the life of a shinobi involved killing people, so it was just a matter of time before he had to fight for his life. He shouldn't feel bad, anyways. He was in the Chunin Exams and the snake-lady had tried to kill them. Not to mention, when it came to the point of kill-or-be-killed, he preferred the first option even if he felt a little guilty by thinking that.

 _"... I will protect you with my life, all of you." Kakashi said, then turned around and gave them an eye-smile. "I won't allow my comrades to die. That is absolute."_

His sensei was willing to kill for the sake of protecting his comrades. The Kusa nin had been willing to kill him, Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke. Therefore, her death was justified. So, why? Why was he still feeling uneasy? What was the feeling inside his gut that was telling him things could've been done in a different way, that her death was unnecessary? He shook his head and tried to regain his composure. He would have to deal with the psychological aftermath later on. Right now, they were in an unsafe area and the explosion might've called some unwanted attention. They needed to get out of there as soon as possible. He looked at Sasuke, who was sitting on his knees and looking exhausted. Sakura was right at his side with her hands glowing in a green light, in other words, she was putting her Medical Ninjutsu to work. "Sasuke, are you al-"

He couldn't finish his sentence. An overwhelming sensation of fatigue suddenly exploded inside of him, forcing him to fall on his lower back. He immediately understood what was going on. The Karura Tensei reached its limits and the Sage Mode had faded away. Normally, this wouldn't be much of a problem, but when he performed that last wind jutsu, he poured all of his remaining Nature Chakra into it to make it more powerful. This left him with little normal chakra left, and he was beginning to experience chakra exhaustion. His breath became short and rough, and his vision became a bit blurry. He tried to get up, but his muscles were aching and his back was killing him. His face was sweaty and a little red, like he was just done running a long race around Konoha at full speed. If he forced himself, he'd probably black out and he didn't want that. ' I guess I need to rest some time before we can move. Sasuke also looks like he could use a little break. That fire jutsu really was something.'

"Khu khu khu, outstanding performance, you two. You really are crafty young boys."

Shujinko felt his heart drop down upon hearing that voice. It was similar to the one from the snake laky he just killed, but slightly more masculine. Fearing for the worst, he looked up at the source of the voice and saw something he was never meant to.

It was the Kusa nin, alive... but changed. He was showing his real face, and Shujinko felt sick just by looking at it. Ignoring the fact that the individual was most likely a hermaphrodite by now, he stared at the face of the Kusa nin and failed to answer how could one person be so inhuman-looking. His skin wasn't just pale; it was as white as a sheet of paper. His irises were golden, just like Shujinko's, but slightly darker and had purple marks around his eyes. To top it all up, he also had remarkably pronounced cheekbones. Oh, and the disgusting tongue was as long as ever. Long story short, he was the living definition of a human snake. His headband now showed the symbol of Otogakure, for some reason.

"Who... Who are you!? What are you!?" Sasuke shouted. The human snake laughed and raised two fingers, casting a paralysis jutsu on Sakura and Sasuke. Shujinko was on another branch and he couldn't even move properly, so there was no need to paralyze him.

"My name... is Orochimaru. I've had my eye on you for quite some time, Sasuke-kun. You possess something that I greatly desire: The power of the Uchiha clan. Your eyes, although not fully developed, show great potential."

'O-Orochimaru!? There's only one person in this world with that name... No, I don't believe this, I don't believe this! One of the Densetsu no Sannin!? What is he doing here!?'

"What do you want from us!?" Sakura demanded. "We've done nothing to you!"

"Oh, I am quite aware of that." Orochimaru calmly replied before putting his hand inside his mouth and extracting the Heaven scroll. "As for what I want, I believe an exchange would be the appropriate term. Sasuke-kun, you desire power, do you not? You want power in order to accomplish your revenge. You want power to kill Itachi for what he did to you and your family." Sasuke's eyes grew as big as dinner plates. "I can give you that power, so long as you provide me with something else. To fully prove that you have what it takes, you must first defeat the Oto nins that are coming your way, and then pass these exams with flying colors. And, to make things a little more interesting..." he trailed off. All of a sudden, the scroll was engulfed in green flames, leaving nothing but ashes behind.

Sakura looked ready to cry. "T-The scroll... no."

The Sannin turned his head and smirked at Shujinko. "I will say this to you, Shujinko-kun. While your prowess in battle and your intelligence are interesting, I must refrain myself from extending my invitation to you as well. Only one of you may join me. In due time, however, I may pay you a visit. Your Kekkei Genkai is intriguing, and the thought of experimenting with you is more tempting than what you can imagine. Who knows what sort of power your blood holds?" he made a pause to lick his lips. "There is only one way to find out. For now, I only ask you to survive."

Every ounce of color faded away from Shujinko's face. This man... this monster, was basically saying he was going to find him in the future. He was stunned, absolutely petrified. The Sannin's chakra was cold and malevolent, even worse than Naruto's when the Kyuubi's chakra leaked and took control over his body at the Naruto Bridge. While the Kyuubi's chakra was wild and ferocious, it was similar to a beast that didn't know any better. Naruto was out of himself, almost like he was being manipulated. But the Sannin's chakra... was perfectly stable despite its foulness. He was a madman, a highly intelligent and perfectly aware madman. He wanted to do despicable things to him, and he perfectly knew how to do those things. Hell, he said it himself. _"... the thought of experimenting with you is more tempting than what you can imagine..."_ Just thinking about being touched by his hands was both terrifying and disgusting beyond any scale.

"I must go now, but first..." Orochimaru weaved a twisted Tiger hand sign and his neck suddenly stretched from the rest of his body towards Sasuke, who was still paralyzed. The Sannin opened his mouth and bite Sasuke's neck, making him scream in absolute agony. Once the deed was done, Orochimaru's neck returned to its place. The man was smiling in satisfaction, like an artist who just finished his masterpiece. Sasuke's body waved and dropped to the ground like a ragdoll.

"Sasuke-kun! You, what have you done to Sasuke-kun!?" the pinkette shrieked.

"Why, I gave him a parting gift." the snake-human replied. "He will come for more of my power. My apologies, Shujinko-kun, but I only had one gift that I needed to deliver to Sasuke-kun. Perhaps you will receive the same gift one day? Only time will tell. So long, Team 7." After saying those words, the Sannin disappeared in a whirlwind, leaving an unconscious Sasuke and Naruto along with a frightened Shujinko and Sakura.

* * *

Little shorter than my usual ones, but it should quench your thirst for now.

What are your thoughts about the fight? Did it meet your standards? I sure hope so. I won't lie, writing fight scenes is not my specialty, so I'll be happy to receive constructive criticism as long as it's… well, constructive.

Some of you might be wondering why Orochimaru didn't gave Shujinko the Curse Mark when, in reality, he'd be perfectly able to. And the answer for that is: For the sake of the plot.

Think about it. The Curse Mark is based on Senjutsu, so there's no way it could be compatible with the Karura Tensei. It would interfere with his Kekkei Genkai and screw with his chakra in more than one way. And besides, can you really imagine Shujinko acting under the influence of the Curse Mark? I sure can't. It fits Sasuke, but not our brown-haired hero. Therefore, I came up with an excuse for Orochimaru. He can't give someone the Curse Mark whenever he wants because he only has a limited amount of Juugo's enzymes and his own Senjutsu chakra. I know, sort of a lame excuse but please try to buy it.

Little glossary:

Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Summoning Jutsu

Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu – Kunai Clone Jutsu

Gogyoo Fuuin – Five Pronged Seal

Fuuton: Repuushoo – Wind Style: Gale Palm

Fuuton: Daittopa – Wind Style: Great Breakthrough

Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu – Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu

Fuuton: Dai Repuushoo – Wind Style: Great Gale Palm

Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter. You know how it goes: Review, Favorite and/or Follow if you like how this story is going.

Ja ne!


	20. Chapter 20

**CHAPTER 20: THE CURSE SEAL**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's of this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

To say that Shujinko was tired was an understatement. He was exhausted.

After the fight with Orochimaru, Team 7 was left with one shaken Sakura, one fatigued Shujinko and an unconscious Naruto and Sasuke. While Naruto seemed to be sleeping peacefully, Sasuke was suffering from a burning fever and showed no signs of recovery. The spot where Orochimaru had bitten him left a mark of three tomoes on his neck, symbolizing a fully developed Sharingan. The mark was, without a doubt, the source of Sasuke's pain and misery.

Sakura and Shujinko found shelter in a secluded area surrounded by oak trees big enough to use as a camping site not too far away from the boys' fight with Orochimaru. Shujinko wanted to go a little further, but his weakened body wouldn't allow him. Sakura took it upon herself to heal her teammates, but unfortunately, her medical training only went so far. There wasn't much she could do for Naruto, as his physical injuries were already healed ('Just like when he stabbed his hand after the attack of the Demon Brothers.' Shujinko noted. He had no idea why, though.) and his awakening was really a matter of time. Sasuke was in a worse shape. While his physical injuries were something Sakura could work on, she had no idea how to stop or diminish his growing fever. The only thing she could do right now was placing wet towels on his forehead and hope for the best.

Shujinko's injuries were more psychological than anything. Orochimaru, one of the most dangerous and immoral individuals you can come across, basically told him that he would come for him once the time was right, that he would experiment with his body. What was he supposed to do against that? His power was nothing compared to the Sannin's. He doubted even his sensei could challenge him to a fight and walk out alive, and considering the amount of admiration and respect Shujinko held for his sensei, that was saying something. The only man that could stand his own and win was the Hokage, and that was a big maybe. Even if he was still called 'Shinobi no Kami' by the older and younger generations alike, it was no secret that the Sandaime was well past his prime. He was sixty nine years-old, about to reach his seventies. By shinobi standards, he was old as hell. He could still fight, no doubt about that, but simply not like he used to.

One thing was certain: They had to alarm the proctors and let them know the Sannin was on the loose.

Taking a small sip out of his canteen, Shujinko sat down and watched how Sakura tried her hardest to stay awake. Several hours had passed since Orochimaru left them, and both of them were sleep-deprived. Hell, unless he moved around or drank some caffeine, he was almost certain he'd fall asleep. However, he couldn't risk leaving Sakura alone or getting himself ambushed by moving around and he was pretty sure he wasn't going to find a coffee shop in the middle of the Forest of Death, so all he could do was to rub his face with water and hope that Sasuke and Naruto both woke up so he could get some sleep. They were also running low on food. They only had a few ration bars left and they needed to save some for the unconscious Uchiha and Uzumaki. Oh, and they still needed to find a Heaven Scroll. Hurray.

'At least I've recovered some of my chakra.' Shujinko thought as he rubbed his eyes. Then, a thought came to him. The spot where they were resting at was good for camping, but not the best for keeping a low profile. What if someone was spying on them right now? What if they were being watched? Not wanting to take any chances, he crossed his legs and brought his palms together.

"Shujinko?" Sakura questioned, but her teammate kept his silence. She realized what he was trying to do, but couldn't quite figure out why.

Once he gathered enough Nature Chakra, Shujinko activated the Karura Tensei and entered Hawk Sage Mode. Unfortunately, he hadn't quite mastered his sensory skills, so it was tough to recognize chakra signatures with accuracy unless they were close. Chakra signatures were like faces: Once you remember them well enough, you rarely forget them. Shujinko was able to recognize his teammate's chakra signatures with ease, but everyone else's were like blurry images he couldn't quite understand. It was like comparing a portrait done by a professional artist and the drawing of a four year-old. You could recognize what was portrayed in the artist's painting right away, but it wasn't easy to understand a drawing made by a toddler.

He focused, focused, focused... and then his body stiffened. He picked up three chakra signatures coming their way six o'clock. Trying his best to stay calm, Shujinko slowly raised his voice. "Someone's coming."

Sakura's eyes went wide in fear. "I-Is it-"

"No, it's not... Orochimaru." the Ozuma said with a shudder, one that Sakura didn't fail to notice. "I don't know who they are, but they're coming here." Sakura blinked, and the next thing she knew, she was holding the Earth scroll. "Take care of this. I'll face them and make them retreat, or at least push them away from here. If... If I don't win, then at least they won't get our Earth scroll from me. I'll take one of the fake scrolls Naruto brought and use it as a bargain chip." Shujinko said as he reached for one of Naruto's fake scrolls and started writing the kanji for 'Earth' on it to make it look like it was genuine. "If they don't think they can beat me, they'll hopefully surrender and accept the scroll. If they do... Then I'll just try my hardest."

"Wait, you can't take an entire team on your own! They... They might kill you!"

"But if I don't go, it's more than likely that they'll find us. We can't fight and protect these two at the same time. I know Kakashi-sensei insist on working together, but right now, we don't have much of a choice. Besides..." Shujinko made a pause and sighed deeply while staring at the ground. "... If they kill me, they'll get what they want and leave you alone. There's no need for you to risk your life when-"

Shujinko didn't get to finish his sentence. Before he could react, Sakura approached him and slapped him across his face. "Don't you dare say that!" she nearly shrieked, tears escaping from her emerald eyes. "There's no way you're gonna die! You're one of the strongest Genins I know, so don't tell me you're not gonna make it!"

The Ozuma stared at his female teammate in absolute shock while clutching his left cheek in an attempt to ease the hot pain he was experiencing. Sakura, the girl who was usually sensitive and kind to everyone (unless she was dealing with Naruto, that is), slapped him. HIM. He was used to seeing her punch Naruto, as she did so in a daily basis, but that was because Naruto annoyed her a great deal. He stared into her eyes and understood what was going on.

Sakura was terrified. She was in a forest where people tried to kill each other for the sake of obtaining a scroll, surrounded by enemies, with two unconscious teammates (one of them being the love of her life) and with Orochimaru lurking around. Now, he was telling her that he had to leave her alone and that he may not come back. The emotional strain was simply too much for her to handle. She didn't know what was going on, and there was no way she could manage to get through all of this on her own. She simply couldn't.

He felt pity for her, but he knew there was no point in sugarcoating reality. They were ninjas, people who had to face death and put their lives at risk. He couldn't look at her face and tell her that he would come back undamaged and that everything was going to be alright without feeling like a liar. He didn't know if this was going to be his last day alive. His battle with Orochimaru had been a close call, that much was certain.

"Sakura, I can't promise you that I'll come back." There, he said it. "I promise I will fight as hard as I can and give it my all. If I have a chance of beating them, then I'll take it. We survived Orochimaru, didn't we?" 'Even if he was only playing with us and could've killed us effortlessly.' he mentally added.

The pinkette didn't look so sure, but she didn't have enough strength to argue. "Please... Please don't die." she sniffled.

"... I'll try." was the only answer Shujinko could think of before stepping out of their shelter and disappearing into the woods.

* * *

"Well well well, what do we have here?"

Shujinko was standing on top of a tree branch, carefully observing the Takigakure team that stood in front of him. The leader of the team was undoubtedly the one in the middle, easily recognizable by the almost palpable 'commander douchebag' aura his persona was giving. He was a blond boy with short hair, fair skin and brown eyes and of wide body complexion. He wore a grey, sleeveless tunic and navy blue shorts that barely reached past his knees. He wore his headband around his waist, just like Lee. His height was a little short for someone his age, Shujinko supposed. Fifteen years old by the looks of it and he had a katana strapped to his back.

His two teammates weren't as intimidating as their leader. Scratch that, they weren't intimidating at all. The two of them were tall, scrawny and had the same uniform as the blond youth that was standing between them. The only major differences between them were their headbands and their hair color. The one on the left wore his headband as a bandana and had black hair. The one on the right wore a regular headband on his forehead and had chestnut brown hair.

"Oi, gaki, I'm talking to you." the blond boy spoke. "What are you doing here on your own? You got lost in the forest and started looking for your mommy?" he asked before letting out a raucous laugh, followed by his fellow teammates.

The golden-eyed boy's eye twitched. 'That has to be the most primitive sense of humor I've ever seen in my life.' "I don't want to fight you. Let's just mind our own business and be on our way."

"Awwwww, what's the problem? Too scared to fight?"

"No. It's just that I don't see the point in doing that. Instead, we can work out a deal." the golden-eyed boy carefully reached for the fake Earth scroll that was inside his pouch. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have offered the scroll as a bargain chip, even if it was a fake one. But here, he was at disadvantage. He has fighting alone against three other opponents who seemed to be well-rested and ready to confront him.

"So you have an Earth scroll, huh? That's perfect. Just the one we were looking for. Hand over that scroll and I'll make sure you won't suffer... much." the blond Genin from Taki said as he unsheathed his katana and took a fighting stance.

The two other boys started cheering in an almost fangirl-ish way, making Shujinko remember the times when Sasuke was cheered by his fangirls before a spar. "Go on, Hadeki! Show that wimp who's boss!"

"That's right! Teach him a lesson! A gaki like him doesn't stand a chance against you!"

"Both of you, shut up! You're breaking my concentration!" Hadeki barked. "This is our chance to finally get an Earth scroll. This Konoha Genin looks tired, so this is gonna be pretty easy. You two just stay out of my way and make sure this gaki's team doesn't get behind our back."

Shujinko took a deep breath, returned the fake scroll to its place inside his pouch and drew two kunais, steeling himself for the unavoidable battle that was about to begin. 'They don't seem to have an ounce of teamwork. That Hideki guy is obviously the dumb muscle of the group while those two are wimps with no initiative. If I defeat Hadeki, the other two shouldn't put much of a fight.'

Without another word, Hadeki launched himself towards Shujinko, swinging his katana in a horizontal fashion. The brown-haired boy managed to hold his kunais and stop the attack before the sword could reach him. He winced slightly when he realized the strong grip Hadeki had on his blade. Hadeki brought his katana back and tried to stab Shujinko with it, but said boy stepped aside and attempted to stab Hadeki's right arm with his left kunai. The young swordsman reacted in time and used his right hand to grab Shujinko's wrist. The blond Genin from Takigakure used his left hand to hold his katana and swung it horizontally, as if trying to slice Shujinko's body in two. The Ozuma blocked the sword with the kunai he was holding in his right hand.

This move ended up causing a stalemate between the two fighters. Shujinko was unable to move his left hand because Hadeki was grabbing his wrist and his right hand was keeping Hadeki's katana at bay. He could try to stab his opponent with his right hand, but he would give Hadeki an opening that he could take advantage of. Using his left hand was out of the question, obviously. What was he supposed to do now? He couldn't jump back to gain distance and he couldn't weave hand signs.

Instead of using his hands, Shujinko buried his left foot deep inside Hadeki's stomach. When his enemy bent over in almost 90 degrees, Shujinko performed a rather unorthodox move and crashed his forehead against Hadeki's, making him lose his balance and step away. Now that he was free from his grip, the Ozuma threw two shurikens at his legs, hoping to create some damage. However, Hadeki quickly recovered and used his katana to swing away the incoming projectiles. Shujinko frowned at his adversary. While Hadeki was reckless and stupid to a degree, he certainly knew how to use a katana.

'I have to keep them away from Sakura, that's the only thing that matters.' Shujinko thought as he started jumping from branch to branch. Of course, Hadeki followed him while throwing every insult he could think of. At one point, Shujinko spun around in midair and threw a kunai at him, followed by a set of hand signs. "Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu!" Four kunais appeared out of the original, creating a horizontal line of knifes. Hadeki was taken back by the jutsu and, instead of deflecting them with his sword, he jumped over them. Little did he knew, that was exactly what Shujinko wanted him to do. "Fuuton: Repuushoo!" Shujinko shouted with his palms brought together. Because Hadeki was still yet to reach a tree branch, he was caught in the gale of wind and was sent back against a tree trunk.

The golden-eyed boy started breathing heavily. He had to be more careful from here on out. His chakra levels were nowhere near their fullest and the lack of sleep was starting to get to him. He had to save all the chakra he could, otherwise Hadeki would overpower him and probably kill him. Instead of performing another jutsu, he unsealed his Fuuma Shuriken and and threw it to the Taki Genin.

"DON'T SCREW ITH ME!" Hadeki roared as he stood up and, much to Shujinko's shock, snapped the incoming Fuuma Shuriken in two with his katana.

Despite the situation he was in, Shujinko couldn't help but feel sad for the loss of his weapon. That Fuuma Shuriken had served him faithfully ever since he bought it from Tenten's store. It was his favorite weapon from his arsenal, and now it was lying on the tree branch next to a pissed off Hadeki, broken and useless like a blunt kunai.

"Let's see how you like this!" the Taki Genin shouted as he jumped out of his spot and approached Shujinko with his katana ready to strike. "Hirasshu!" The katana suddenly had a thin layer of fire. Shujinko, who wasn't expecting this, tried to jump out of the way, but the fire-enhanced blade caught his left leg and slashed it. Shujinko screamed in pain and landed on the other side of the tree branch with a loud THUD noise. "Got you! This is what you get for mocking me, stupid gaki!"

The brown-haired boy couldn't speak. The pain he was experiencing right now was almost unbearable. His wound was not only hurting, but burning as well. Thankfully, the wound was long, but not very deep. However, that didn't mean it wasn't serious. He tried to stand up and put some weight on his leg, but he found it to be severely painful. The only thing he could do right now was to wrap his wound with something, so Shujinko took off his black jacket and tore one of its sleeves to use it as a bandage. Hadeki was so busy taunting him that failed to notice the inferior exploding tag Shujinko attached to the rest of his jacket. He wrapped the remaining of his jacket into a compressed ball of leather and shakily pulled out one of the two kunais he had left.

"Are you ready to die, gaki? If you had only given me your scroll, you wouldn't have to be in this position right now. But I guess you're nothing but a stupid idiot, so I can't blame you."

'He called me a 'stupid idiot'. This guy is too much.'

Hadeki then let out a war cry and started running towards Shujinko. His katana was again engulfed in a layer of fire. Instead of jumping back right away, Shujinko waited for Hadeki to come close enough and then jumped back while throwing the leather ball at the swordsman. "Hirasshu!" Hadeki shouted before swinging his katana in a horizontal fashion, only to cut through the remaining of the Ozuma's jacket.

BOOM

The inferior exploding tag reacted upon contact with the fire that surrounded Hadeki's katana. The feebleminded swordsman was caught in the explosion and lost his balance, making him fall from the branch and land on the ground with a severely wounded body. Had it not been for the fact that the explosion was partially covered by the jacket, Hadeki would've died right away. He had a number of burn marks on his body and his nose was twisted in an unnatural way, blood leaking out of his nostrils. The explosion was enough to send the katana away from its owner's reach, getting lost somewhere in the woods.

"Hadeki!" one of his teammates shouted. "Are you alright!?"

"I'm fine, you idiot! Get out of my sight or I'll crush you too!" Hadeki shouted back with much difficulty as he slowly stood up. His teammate stuttered a shy 'Hai' and ran away. The swordsman's face was contorted with rage and dirty with his own blood. Pulling a kunai out of his holster, Hadeki snarled at Shujinko. "That does it! I'm done playing around! I'M GONNA KILL YOU! I SWEAR I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" he cried out loud before charging towards the golden-eyed boy.

The hatred and desperation in Hadeki's voice was more than enough to unnerve Shujinko, who took a step back and pulled out another kunai, acting out of pure reflex. His eyes widened when he realized just how close Hadeki was from him. He was tired and barely able to keep himself awake, so when Hadeki was only six feet away, every ounce of consciousness and awareness was gone while fear and the desire to survive took control over his body. Deprived of will, he involuntarily activated the Karura Tensei, ducked down to avoid getting slashed by Hadeki's kunai and buried his two knives deep into the left and right sides of his chest.

...

"A-A-Aaaarghhghg."

When Shujinko's sense of reason kicked in, he looked up and saw something that would change his life forever.

The face of the first shinobi killed by his own hand.

Hadeki's mouth was hanging open and twitching up and down while the accumulated blood inside was silently and uninterruptedly traveling down the corners. His eyes were as wide as dinner plates, like his eyeballs were threatening to pop out of their spot. His once grey tunic was now sporting a crimson stain that kept on growing until it reached his waist. His arms sunk and untensed to the point where he dropped the kunai he was previously holding. Hadeki spat out some blood at Shujinko's face, who was too busy figuring out what just happened to realize. Then, his eyes closed and his body fell to the ground where his wounds continued to pour blood until a pool was made.

Shujinko blinked a couple of times before realization dawned upon him. He had done it. He just killed a human being. Time seemed to slow down to the point of becoming nonexistent for the Ozuma, who felt an explosion of mixed feelings inside of him. He felt relieved, terrified, disgusted and confused. His calculating brain was unable to find an answer that could help his numb mind and aching heart, and not even a slap to the face would've received a reaction out of him. Almost wanting to fool himself, Shujinko kneeled next to Hadeki's body and placed two shaky fingers on his neck with the intention of catching heartbeats. It was nothing but a desperate attempt to escape from the fact that he was the one responsible for his death. When he couldn't find any, his body was suddenly deprived of strength and was impossible for him to stand up.

Just to make things even better, Hadeki's teammates showed up. "Hadeki, what happened? We heard someone screaming and we..." the one with black hair suddenly stopped talking and really, really looked at what was in front of him. He saw the blood that stained Hadeki's tunic and the blood that covered the kunais of the brown-haired boy. It took him a while to put two and two together, and even then he couldn't find a way to properly voice his thoughts. "Ha-Hadeki... he's... You k-killed..."

The two Genins from Takigakure shared a horrified look and, without thinking twice, ran away as fast as they could. If that boy was capable of killing their leader, which he did, what chance did they have against him?

The Ozuma didn't bother to look their way. It wasn't like he could fight back or anything. Feeling hopeless, he lifted two fingers and summoned a fraction of his chakra. "Kai." he weakly muttered, wishing that all of this was just an elaborated Genjutsu. When nothing happened, Shujinko laughed humorlessly at his foolishness and quickly used his right hand to wipe the moisture gathered in his eyes.

'Damn it, Shujinko. Pull it together.' he mentally chastised himself. 'You're a shinobi and he was trying to kill you. H-He brought this on himself. You tried to talk to him but he didn't listen. It didn't have to end like this, but he gave you no choice. You're not a murderer. You did this to save yourself and to protect Sakura...' Shujinko gasped at the thought of his teammate. He completely forgot about Sakura! What if something wrong happened to her while he was fighting Hadeki? What if she was hurt? What if...

... What if she met the same fate as Hadeki?

Shujinko vigorously shook his head. 'No! I won't allow that to happen! I told her to stay put and it's my responsibility to protect my teammates.' With all of the strength he could muster, Shujinko stood up and was about to leave when he remembered something. Looking back at Hadeki's corpse, he noticed a white scroll inside of his back pouch. As repulsive as he thought it was, Shujinko took the pouch from the body and retrieved the Heaven scroll. He felt like the scroll was on fire and quickly put it inside his own pouch.

He also caught sight of something else. Inside Hadeki's pouch were stored a handful of food pills wrapped up in a napkin. Food pills were drugs said to replenish one's chakra and nourish the body with powerful stimulants and nutrients, acting like a calorie bomb. If a shinobi ate one of those, his body would allow him to fight for approximately three days without the need for food or rest, basically transforming him into a fighting machine. The price for the temporary boost of power, however, was nothing to laugh at. Once the effects wore off, the shinobi who ate it was brought to the point of complete and utter exhaustion, needing a few days to recover at the very least.

This left Shujinko with two options: He could avoid using the food pills and go on with little to no energy and chakra, or he could take one and risk suffering the aftermath. Shujinko didn't like the use of drugs. He believed that every shinobi should always rely on their own strength rather than borrow temporal power that wasn't theirs. But right now, he had to set aside his judgment and see the bigger picture. If he kept going the way he was, there was a chance he could pass out on his way to Sakura, and even if he managed to get there without falling unconscious, he still wouldn't be of much help. He needed proper rest and so did Sakura. If he took the pill, however...

In the end, he decided to keep the food pills and use them as a last resource. If Naruto and Sasuke were awake by now, then those two could keep guard and allow him and Sakura to get some well-deserved rest, because Kami knew he could use one. Before he could stop himself, he turned around and stared at Hadeki's corpse one last time. His heart shrank and his lips started trembling, but he somewhat overcame the disgusting, guilty sensation with what Kakashi once told him about killing.

 _"Your fear is misplaced. You shouldn't be scared of killing someone; you should be scared of what happens next. Nobody can free himself from their first kill. We shinobi must learn how to control our feelings, because if we didn't, we would go insane. When you see yourself taking away the life of another, you can't help but wonder if he really deserved such a fate. At first, you'll feel guilty and might think of yourself as a monster. Your first kills will be tough to deal with, but eventually you'll come to terms with yourself. And remember, sensei here will be there for you when those hard times come."_

'Your first kills will be tough to deal with. That's an understatement.' Shujinko thought bitterly, feeling his insides revolt at the sight of his first victim. Not wanting to keep psychologically torturing himself, the brown-haired boy climbed up a tree and started jumping from branch to branch. Along the way, he decided to seal his broken Fuuma Shuriken, hoping to fix it once the current part of the exams came to an end. It had sentimental value and he couldn't get rid of it without trying to have it fixed first.

As he got closer to the camping area, a sickening sensation (that was surprisingly unrelated to the fact that he just killed someone) started to grow on him to the point of becoming almost unbearable. In order to confirm his suspicions, he activated the Karura Tensei for a brief moment and searched for a chakra signature. With some difficulty, he was able to detect Sakura's chakra, which meant that she was alive. Shujinko sighed in relief, but he shuddered the second he noticed a second chakra close to where Sakura was. It was dense and powerful, but most of all, it was malevolent. Very, very malevolent.

He pumped more chakra to his feet and hurried the pace...

* * *

Sakura didn't know what to do anymore.

A few minutes after Shujinko left, she was attacked by the Genin team from Otogakure, the one with the guy who looked like a mummy. According to Dosu, they were under orders to fight and kill Sasuke, who didn't look like he was going to wake up anytime soon. They were able to spot the traps she managed to assemble almost right away, leaving her defenseless. She would've been killed had it not been for Lee, who tracked her down and stood up for her even when they were in different teams and, therefore, were enemies. Lee told her how he was going to keep his promise of protecting her with his life before engaging the Oto Genins using his Taijutsu. Even when the odds were clearly against him, the self-proclaimed 'Beautiful Green Beast' managed to fend off the attackers and almost defeated their leader.

Almost.

After attempting a particularly risky technique with little to no success against Dosu, Lee was left in a severely weakened state. He couldn't even blink without feeling overwhelmingly tired, and the three Oto Genins were as fresh as a lettuce. With the use of his metallic gauntlet, Dosu attacked Lee and, somehow, managed to bust his eardrum without even having to touch him. Disoriented and exhausted, Lee ended up just like Naruto and Sasuke, unconscious and unable to fight.

Once they were done with Lee, they focused their attention on her. They mocked her, hurt her and threatened her, but she never gave up. She even went as far as cutting her long and well-kept hair in order to free herself from Kin's grip. Just when they were about to end her life, she was saved once again, this time by the members of Team Asuma who made their entrance at the perfect moment. All that it took was for Zaku to call Choji a 'fat wuss' to get things started, and they certainly did. Team Asuma showed off their respective clan techniques: Choji engaged Zaku with his Expansion Jutsu, Ino took control over Kin's mind with her Mind Transfer Jutsu and Shikamaru paralyzed Dosu with his Shadow Possession Jutsu.

However, the Oto team was not finished. Choji accidentally crashed into a boulder while he was trying to roll over Zaku, turning himself back into his normal size and leaving him dizzy. Once he made sure Choji was not getting up to continue their fight, Haku surprised everybody (except for Dosu, that is) by attacking Kin, his own teammate, while she was still under Ino's control. It turns out the Yamanaka's clan jutsu was a double-edged kunai, because any damage that was inflicted on Kin while she was possessed would also be inflicted on Ino's body. In other words, if 'Kin' died, so would Ino. Lastly, Shikamaru's Shadow Possession Jutsu only lasted for a couple of minutes before it faded away, freeing Dosu and leaving Shikamaru at disadvantage.

Luckily, Lee's teammates arrived as well. When Neji and Tenten saw Lee's body lying on the ground like a mistreated ragdoll, it was clear that they wanted retribution. But before either of them could do the first move, someone stopped them. It was Sasuke...

... Or was he really?

A purple, spiraling chakra surrounded Sasuke's body while the left side of his face was covered in black, flame-like marks that came out of the same spot Orochimaru had bitten him. The look on his face was the embodiment of demented hatred as he stood with his head and arms hanging down. His Sharingan swirled as he asked Sakura who was the one who beat her, but Sakura was far more concerned in figuring out what was happening to him. When she asked what was wrong, Sasuke said there was nothing wrong with him, that he was merely allowing his new-found power to flow through his body. He then kept on ranting about how he was an avenger and how he needed to achieve power regardless its price, even if it meant letting himself be consumed by hatred and darkness.

Of course, Zaku had to open his big mouth and revealed to Sasuke, without the slightest hint of fear or regret, that he was one who beat Sakura mercilessly. Sasuke's anger grew, and so did his raw power. The black marks now covered his entire face and the spiraling chakra that surrounded his body started to move at an even faster rate. Zaku, seemingly oblivious to this, declared he was going to take care of Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura with one hit and poured a good amount of his chakra into his jutsu, the Zankuukyokuha, which strongly resembled Shujinko's Dai Repuushoo. The Zankuukyokuha placed an immense amount of air and sound pressure into a concentrated blast that was fired off from his hands. The jutsu was strong enough to level the surrounding area, and when he saw there was no one in front of him, he supposed they were blown away. He was sorely mistaken.

Before he could turn his head to the left, Sasuke punched him hard enough to send the guy a good thirty ft. away. Sakura didn't even realize she was in another place until she heard the loud THWACK noise that Sasuke's fist caused upon striking Zaku. Sasuke then weaved some hand signs and expelled fire projectiles out of his mouth, which had hidden shurikens inside. Zaku extinguished the fire projectiles by sending airwaves, but he was unable to notice the hidden shurikens until it was too late. While Zaku was busy defending himself from the incoming weapons to the best of his abilities, the raven-haired boy swiftly appeared behind him and grabbed both his arms, forcing him to get on his knees.

 **"You're really proud of your arms, aren't you?"** Sasuke asked with sickening satisfaction, obviously taking joy in the fact that he was causing pain to his enemy. **"You seem to be very attached to them."**

"No! Get away from me! What do you think you're doing!?"

 **"What am I doing? I'm just testing the new power that has been given to me."**

CRACK CRACK

Sasuke applied more pressure to Zaku's arms, dislocating them in the process. Zaku screamed in pain and, unable to endure the torture, lost consciousness and dropped to the ground. The Haruno and the Yamanaka (who was back to her real body) with open mouths and tears in their eyes, unable to believe the cruelty displayed by their crush. Choji was trembling like he just got done swimming in cold water during the middle of the night, covering his ears with his hands. Shikamaru was visibly perturbed even though he tried not to show it. Tenten, due to her experience and her unfamiliarity with Sasuke, wasn't as shocked as the two other kunoichis but she was still wide-eyed all the same. Even Neji, one of the most stoic and unexpressive Genins of their generation (Shino and Sasuke being top contenders as well), was showing short, subtle signs of uneasiness, like how the corner of his mouth twitched every once in a while.

 **"Looks like you're the only one left."** the Uchiha said as he turned around to face Dosu, who flinched and took a step back. **"I just hope you make things more interesting than your little friend."** With that said, Sasuke started walking towards Dosu, a psychotic smile on his face. He felt unstoppable, drunk with the power Orochimaru gave him. Nothing was unreachable for him now. This... this was what he needed, what he desired the most. With this gift, he would quench his thirst for vengeance and bring honor to his fallen clan, just like he was destined to do.

"Sasuke, that's enough!"

The half-insane Uchiha glanced to his left as he recognized the voice. Shujinko was standing on a tree branch, panting heavily and slightly leaning against the tree for support. "Shujinko!" Sakura shouted, feeling a mix of relief and disgust at the same time. She sure was happy to know hers teammate wasn't dead, but the blood that stained his face and t-shirt made her feel a little sick. She also noticed how his jacket was missing, and how the only part that was left of it was wrapped around his leg like a bandage of sorts. 'He's alive, but injured.'

 **"About time you got here. I was starting to wonder if you were gonna make it to the show."** Sasuke said with a crooked smirk.

But Shujinko had no intention of fooling around. He witnessed what Sasuke did to Zaku, and he was honestly shocked. Sasuke was many things: Arrogant, cold, almost expressionless, rude, etc. The main point was that, despite all of his traits, Sasuke wasn't an evil person. He didn't take pleasure in hurting people, so him dislocating someone's arms just because he wanted to inflict pain upon his victim was, without a doubt, one of the most un-Sasuke things Sasuke had ever done in his life.

He knew his teammate.

He knew his friend.

He knew Sasuke.

He didn't know who was the one in front of him right now.

"Sasuke, I'm not gonna say it again. Stop using that evil chakra before you lose your mind." Shujinko warned, hoping that his voice wouldn't waver.

 **"And what if I don't?"** the raven-haired boy taunted, apparently forgetting about Dosu. **"You don't have the strength to stop me. You're not my superior, so stop pretending that you are... or else."**

Shujinko grew annoyed and, for a moment, lost his calm and analytic demeanor. The mental image of Hadeki looking at him with his eyes wide open while spilling out blood was mentally wrecking him. Under normal circumstances, he would've tried to stay calm and persuade Sasuke to stop his violent behavior, but after everything he just went through, he simply couldn't control himself. "I WILL stop you, one way or another."

Sasuke threw his head back and laughed hysterically, as if he just heard the funniest joke in history. Once the laughter died, he faced Shujinko with a vicious smile. **"Fine. Let's see if you have what it takes to match my power."**

"SASUKE-KUN, STOP IT!" Sakura yelled as she stood up, ran over to Sasuke and hugged him from behind. The Uchiha looked at Sakura over his shoulder and saw her puffy emerald eyes begging him to stop, to reconsider what he was doing. "Sasuke-kun... please, just stop. Th-This isn't you. You're not evil and y-you don't hurt people just for fun. So please, please stop... Please co-ome back."

The words of his female teammate seemed to have a soothing effect on Sasuke. The marks on his body glowed red and retreated to the left side of his neck, where they were absorbed by the three tomoe mark that Orochimaru left him when he bit him. The purple chakra that surrounded his body dissipated and his Sharingan faded away. Sasuke blinked twice in confusion and fell on his back, suddenly feeling a lot weaker than before. Sakura instantly sat at his side and held his shoulders tightly.

"You're strong, Sasuke. Stronger than me and stronger than my teammates." Dosu spoke slowly as he retrieved a Heaven scroll from his robes and placed it on the ground. "This is what we're going to do. I will leave this Heaven scroll here and you will let us go in peace." Grabbing Zaku and Kin, Dosu looked at Sasuke one last time before leaving. "For the moment, we're even. But if we meet again in combat, I promise we won't run away or hide from you. Farewell..."

"Wait! What is it that Orochimaru did to Sasuke-kun? And why him of all people?" Sakura demanded.

"I don't know. We were only following orders." was Dosu's response. He disappeared before Sakura could ask anything else.

Once the Oto Genins were gone, Team Asuma appeared out of their hiding spot and came to Team 7's aid. Ino took care of Lee, Choji helped Shujinko to stand up and walk and Shikamaru approached Naruto, who was mumbling things like 'Sakura-chan is in danger... I'll protect her... the ramen knight is here...'. Meanwhile, Sasuke was looking at his hand in astonishment, wondering what on Earth that power that came out of nowhere was. It felt destructive and wild... and intoxicating. He quite liked it.

"Get up, you troublesome blond. You're embarrassing yourself." Shikamaru told Naruto. Seeing how Naruto wasn't waking up on his own anytime soon, the lazy Nara decided to get things over with and gently (or maybe not) kicked Naruto in the head.

It worked like a charm. Naruto instantly woke up and furiously rubbed the back of his head. "D'aaaargh, what was that? What's happening?"

"Ask your teammates, it's too troublesome for me to explain."

Naruto blinked a couple of times and looked around him. He remembered fighting that snake woman, going really angry, falling unconscious, dreaming about ramen and now he was waking up with his teammates and Team Asuma. Even Lee and his team were here, too. In other words, he had no idea what was going on. Then he saw Sakura and his mouth reached the ground. "S-Sakura-chan!?"

Sakura turned around and regarded Naruto with a startled look. "Oh Naruto, I didn't know you were awake."

"Sakura-chan, what happened to your hair!? It's... I mean, look at it! It's way too short!"

"Oh, my hair? Yeah, I decided to cut it." she said as she stroked her once long and clean hair. "I like my hair long, but it gets in the way and it's too much work to keep it soft and tidy. It's more practical like this."

"Talking about hair, do you want me to fix it for you?" Ino asked after placing Lee gently on the ground. "If you're gonna wander around with short hair, you might as well try to look presentable, Billboard Brow."

"... Heh, I'd appreciate that, Ino-pig."

With that said, the two love rivals allowed themselves a minute of friendship. Ino used a kunai to cut bits of Sakura's hair, and once she was done, she actually looked more presentable despite the bruises that her pretty face sported. Naruto then looked at Shujinko, who had a grim expression on his face. "Hey, what the hell happened to you, Shujinko? Where's your jacket? And why are you covered in blood?"

Shujinko, who was now standing on his own, adverted his gaze and looked at anywhere but Naruto. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Huh? Why not?"

"Because I said so." was his answer. Ignoring the irked look on Naruto's face, Shujinko addressed Sakura. "Sakura, what did Lee want with you? Did he attack you?"

"Actually, he came just in time to save me. He fought the Oto Genins and almost beat one of them... I'd probably be dead by now had it not been for him."

Shujinko looked back at the spandex-wearing Genin. Tenten was helping him wake up by furiously shaking his shoulders back and forth. It wasn't the nicest way of waking someone up, but it sure was effective. As soon as he regained consciousness, he had to endure a full speech about how irresponsible and reckless he was, courtesy of his bun-haired teammate. It took a while for Shujinko to realize why Lee helped Sakura. Before the start of the Chunin Exams, Lee asked Sakura to be his girlfriend and swore to protect her with his life. 'It looks like he took his vows seriously.' Shujinko thought, looking at Lee in a whole different light. He knew he was strong despite his absurd choice of clothing, but he never really expected him to be so adamant in keeping his promises. Shujinko decided to give Lee his thanks for helping Sakura before parting ways, because he deserved it.

However, Sakura was faster than Shujinko. After healing Lee's busted eardrum with her Medical Ninjutsu, she awarded him with a nice and sincere smile. "Thanks, Lee. It's because of you that I'm alive, and I've gotten a little stronger just by watching you."

Lee was stunned at first, and then he started crying overdramatic tears of happiness. "Oh Sakura-san, your gratitude means the world to me." he sniffled. "But my efforts were not good enough. I was still defeated by those Oto Genins. This means that I have to train harder and become strong so next time I can protect you better. The Lotus of Konoha blooms twice, and when we meet again, I promise you I will be a stronger ninja." Despite not really understanding what he said, Sakura nodded respectfully and reminded herself to treat Lee better in the future.

That was when Neji appeared next to Tenten and Lee. "We have to go now. We have wasted enough time already."

Tenten nodded and helped Lee to stand up. "Right. Let's go, Lee."

"Wait."

Team Gai turned around and saw Shujinko with a serious look on his face. "What do you want?" Neji asked with suspicion.

The Ozuma said nothing. Instead, he slowly approached Lee, trying his hardest not to limp. Tenten's body tensed and carefully reached for her kunai holster. She had nothing against Shujinko. She was even willing to say that he looked like a nice guy, but these were the Chunin Exams and only an inexperienced kunoichi would allow herself to be deceived by looks.

"Lee, there's something I have to say to you." Shujinko said, earning himself a curious look from Lee.

"What is it, Shujinko-kun?"

It was safe to say that Lee was slightly shocked when Shujinko, one of the most gossiped Genins of the Academy and one of the individuals he intended to confront in order to measure his strength, bowed before him. "Thanks for protecting Sakura, Lee. You saved my teammate, and I won't forget that."

A little surprised and pleased by Shujinko's sincere words and gesture, he dutifully returned them. "There is no need to thank me, Shujinko-kun."

Once Shujinko straightened up, he reached for his back pouch using his right hand. Both Neji and Tenten narrowed their eyes, thinking he was going to take out a weapon. Instead, he offered Lee a Heaven scroll, much to Team Gai's bewilderment. "Please accept it, it's the least I can do. We have another Heaven scroll, anyways." That was true, by the way. When Naruto noticed the Heaven scroll Dosu left, he immediately retrieved it. Team Asuma was looking for an Earth scroll, so they didn't bother to have another Heaven scroll.

Neji folded his arms. "How do we know that scroll is authentic?"

"You can take a look at it yourself." Shujinko answered as he tossed the scroll to Neji, who caught it effortlessly and activated his Byakugan to see if the mass, content and texture of the scroll matched their Earth scroll. After a while, he deactivated his Kekkei Genkai and closed his eyes.

"So is the scroll genuine or not, Neji?" Tenten asked.

"It is." he replied while looking inquisitively at Shujinko. "Why are you giving your scroll to your enemy?"

"Because my 'enemy' willingly saved my teammate's life, even when he could've died. That's why."

Also because the scroll used to belong to Hadeki, and Shujinko wanted nothing more than to get rid of it.

The Hyuuga genius remained silent, as if contemplating the worth of Shujinko's answer. Instead of acknowledging Shujinko's motives with a response of his own, he merely turned away and addressed his teammates while storing the Heaven scroll inside his back pouch. "Tenten, Lee, we are leaving now. We must get to the tower as soon as possible."

Shujinko and Lee nodded towards one another before firmly shaking hands, something that caused Tenten's eyes to widen. The brown-haired boy was probably one of the very few people who showed Lee some respect regardless of his stupid bowl haircut and his embarrassing spandex suit. Even though Lee was irritating and extravagant, she still cared for him and it felt nice to see him getting honest gratitude from Shujinko, who was oddly starting to intrigue her, if only a little.

Once Team 7 was alone, Sakura healed the slash on Shujinko's leg despite his protest. Sakura argued that the slash would become infected if she didn't treat it right away. Using the little chakra she still had left, Sakura healed Shujinko's wound until only a scar remained. However, Shujinko's mind was somewhere else. He looked at Sasuke, who was staring at the ground with an almost unreadable expression. Naruto remained clueless of everything and didn't ask Shujinko where he obtained the Heaven scroll from. Whether it was out of privacy or naivety, he didn't know. He didn't really care, either.

The only thing he knew was that he wanted to get out of this forest and go home more than anything in the world.

* * *

That's chapter 20 for y'all.

Sorry for the long wait. I had trouble writing this chapter, especially Hadeki's death scene. I really wanted to make it realistic; as in, how would a twelve year-old feel after killing someone. Because Shujinko was raised in a shinobi village and was taught from young that he was expected to kill someone at some point, Hadeki's death won't completely destroy him. However, that doesn't mean it won't affect him later on.

In case you haven't noticed, I'm speeding things up in the Second Exam. I really don't feel like writing everything according to the episodes. Also, I'm currently looking for beta readers willing to cooperate with me in this story. If anyone's interested, PM me and we'll discuss.

Ja ne!


	21. Chapter 21

**CHAPTER 21: IT ALL STARTS FROM THERE**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

After hours of traveling through the woods while carefully avoiding fatal deathtraps and less-than-tame animals, Team 7 finally arrived to the infamous tower. They stood in front of a red door that was locked with a seal. The seal could only be broken by a participant of the Chunin Exams, while proctors, Chunins and Jounins had to enter using a designated and well-hidden door located near the top of the tower. Naruto casually detached the seal out of the door and entered, followed by his teammates.

They entered an empty room filled with seals on the walls. There was a large, open scroll that showed some sort of message, undoubtedly addressed to all of the candidates. It went like this _: If qualities of Heaven are your desire, acquire wisdom to take your mind higher. If qualities of Earth are what you lack, train your body and prepare to attack. When Heaven and Earth are open together, the peerless path will be righteous forever. This is the secret way that guides us from this place today._

Naruto read the content of the scroll three times before giving up. "What the heck is this all about? What are we supposed to do now?"

"It's like a riddle." Shujinko said, his voice almost mechanic. "It obviously has to do with the Heaven and Earth scrolls. We have to use them to pass this test."

Sakura nodded. "Heaven is like the spiritual aspect of chakra, while Earth is the physical aspect of it. When we combine the two of them..."

"... we get Ninjutsu as a result." Sasuke concluded. "It's settled, then. We have to open both the scrolls at the same time."

Shujinko silently grabbed the Earth scroll while Sakura grabbed the Heaven scroll. He took a deep breath and looked at his female teammate with a blank face. "Ready?" he asked. Sakura gave him a stiff nod and placed the scroll on the floor. "To the count of three. One... Two... Three."

POOOOOOOOOOFFFFF

Smoke appeared out of the scrolls, similar to when a shinobi performed a Summoning Jutsu. The two Genins stepped back in startled surprise, and they were even more surprised when Iruka, out of all people, appeared in front of them.

"I-Iruka-sensei?" Naruto gaped at him. Shujinko remained mute.

The Chunin grinned. "It's good to see you guys."

"What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at the Academy?"

"Yeah, but Hokage-sama asked me to participate in this specific part of the Chunin Exams. I wanted to see if you had what it takes to get here. I have to say, I'm impressed."

Iruka observed his ex-students with fondness. Ever since Naruto became a Genin, the two of them hadn't been able to spend time together the way they used to. He never thought he would miss paying for Naruto's ramen, but much to his surprise, he did. It was good to see he hadn't change a bit; he was still the happy-go-lucky gaki he used to teach.

The smile on his face faded once he got a clear look of his other ex-student, Shujinko. His unwashed t-shirt was dirty with stains of reddish color, but that wasn't what Iruka was concerned about. It was the look on his face what had him worried. His eyes showed a hurricane of emotions that betrayed the almost believable mask of passiveness he was wearing, which might have been convincing enough to fool a stranger and maybe his own teammates, but it wasn't fooling Iruka. He was a Chunin, and Shujinko still wasn't able to conceal his emotions completely. He could restrict them, yes, but they were still noticeable enough for Iruka to notice them. Just like the old saying, the eyes are the windows of a person's soul...

... And just by staring a little at Shujinko's golden eyes, he could tell the boy was going through emotional pain.

"Does that means we pass, Iruka-sensei?" Sakura asked hesitantly.

Iruka shook his head slightly in order to recover himself and then nodded firmly. This was certainly not the place or time to question Shujinko. "That's right. Congratulations."

Naruto instantly approached Iruka and hugged him the same way a little kid would hug his older brother after getting a birthday gift. "Yeah! We passed! We passed! I knew we could do it, I just knew it! Team 7 kicks ass!"

"Language, Naruto." Iruka scolded half-heartedly.

"What would've happened if we had opened the scrolls before reaching the tower?" Sasuke asked, not feeling like greeting Iruka.

"Well, my instructions were simple." the Chunin replied while rolling the scrolls and putting them inside his back pouch. "In case you haven't noticed by now, this test was developed to see how well you could follow orders. You were instructed to obtain both scrolls and keep them closed for no apparent reason. Had you opened any of these scrolls before getting here, you would be put unconscious for the rest of the remaining time period. We didn't tell you that so you would become tempted to open them."

Naruto snorted petulantly at that. "Tempted? Us? Yeah right! We were never tempted, believe it!"

"If you say so, Naruto. If you say so." Iruka said with a chuckle. "You have this day to recover. I bet you're all exhausted after spending three days in the Forest of Death. You'll find bedrooms and bathrooms passed that door over there." he pointed at a small door below the big scroll. "There's also a lunch counter where you can get some food. The instructions for the third task will be explained tomorrow, when the last groups of Genins arrive here. Good luck."

With the use of the Shunshin no Jutsu, Iruka disappeared out of sight. He needed to have a word with a certain silver-haired Jounin...

* * *

"Man, this sure beats the crap out of sleeping on the ground." Naruto proclaimed as he lay down on his bed.

Team 7 was currently in a small room that had four beds and one bathroom with shower included. The tower facilities had a number of rooms available for the Genin teams that arrived before the fifth day so they could get some proper rest. Each team had their own room so that fights could be avoided between participants.

However, the tower facilities didn't belong to a five-star hotel. The bathroom only had one towel, there was no hot water, and there were no hygiene products whatsoever. No shampoo, no soap, no toothpaste, no deodorant, no nothing. Despite all of this, the members of Team 7 had no complains, and if they had any, they kept their thoughts to themselves. Sakura, after spending three and a half days in a giant forest surrounded by deadly creatures, was happy there was a bath at all.

Besides, now that her hair was short, it took her a lot less work to keep it fresh... or as fresh as it could get considering the circumstances. Sasuke obviously remained silent. After all, what sort of Uchiha complained about something as unimportant as the lack of shampoo? Naruto couldn't have cared less about not having hot water as there was hardly any hot water back in his apartment.

"It sure feels nice to take a shower after three days of running around." Sakura, for once, agreed with the whiskered boy. 'Even if we have to share the same towel.' she thought to herself. Although, to be honest, she couldn't really complain about sharing the towel because she was the first one out of the four of them to use it. She sort of regretted it now. She could've waited for Sasuke to use the bathroom first and then get to use the same towel he used to dry himself up.

Shujinko said nothing as he stared at the ceiling. He had barely said anything since the death of Hadeki, and when he spoke, it was only when he was addressed. Even then, the only thing he replied were short answers like 'yes', 'no' and 'I don't know/care'. His teammates quickly noticed how detached and distant Shujinko was, but none of them wanted to ask him why.

Sakura was too afraid to ask because of how he could react. It didn't took a genius to figure out something was bothering him a great deal and that he had no intention of talking about it. Something happened to him after he left her back in the Forest of Death, that much was obvious. A bloody shirt, a slash on his leg, the extra scroll, his aloof demeanor... she really wanted to know what was up with him, but at the same time, she sort of feared the answer.

Sasuke had already figured out what had happened to his teammate. He didn't bother to ask him about how he was feeling because, to put it simply, it was none of his business. Shujinko was dealing with his first kill, and it was up to him to cope with it however he saw fit. If he wanted to talk about it with anyone, then he could. If he wanted to remain silent and keep on brooding, then he also could. He himself had never killed before, and for a moment, he imagined how it would feel to get his hands dirty with the blood of his enemy. Since his enemy was Itachi, the idea didn't felt disturbing at all. Hell, he thought about spilling Itachi's blood ever since he was a boy. Still, he somewhat sympathized with Shujinko right now, if only because he supposed killing for the first time wasn't easy to handle.

Naruto was fighting with himself. As dumb as he was, even he noticed how strange Shujinko was acting, and he didn't like that one bit. It was as if Shujinko's down to earth personality was being replaced by Sasuke's sulky and uncaring personality. He already had one broody bastard for a teammate, and he doubted he could deal with a second one. But what bothered him the most was that Shujinko refused to tell them why was he in such a foul mood. They were teammates; they were supposed to look out for each other. He was dying to know what was causing him that much pain.

Yes, Uzumaki Naruto might not be the brightest kid around the block, but growing up lonely and despised taught him how to read people to a degree, and his guts were telling him that his teammate and friend was experiencing pain. Shujinko could try to act tough all he wanted, but Naruto was determined to find out what was wrong with him. The only reason he hadn't asked him yet was because Sakura suggested giving him some 'space and time'. He obliged, but only because Sakura asked him.

A knock on the door caught their attention. Naruto stood up and reached for the handle. Once the door was open and saw who was the one who knocked, his jaw went down.

"Yo."

"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked in disbelief.

"The one and only."

The Haruno and the Ozuma got out of bed and straightened up. Sakura joined Naruto while Shujinko remained near his bed. "Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing here?" Sakura asked, surprising herself by how much she had missed her sensei these past few days.

The Jounin merely shrugged. "I just wanted to come by and see how you guys were doing. How was your journey here? Did you have any difficulties?"

"Nope." Naruto answered, popping the 'p'. "We ran into some guys but we handled them like they were nothing. Right, Sakura-chan?"

"R-Right." Sakura said while avoiding Kakashi's gaze.

Kakashi nodded. "I see." He looked around the room in search for the Uchiha. "Where's Sasuke, by the way?"

"Sasuke-kun is at the lunch counter. He wanted to recover his strength as soon as possible."

"Very well. Tell him I said hello when he gets here."

"You're not staying?" Shujinko asked, acknowledging the presence of his sensei for the first time since he entered the room.

Kakashi's only visible eye met Shujinkos'. It took the Jounin one good look to realize Shujinko wasn't himself. First, the fact that Shujinko didn't say hello like he usually did was already suspicious.

Second, and probably the most noticeable thing to consider, the blood stains on his t-shirt. Did he really need to go deep on that? It was obvious that his student had been involved in a fight during the four days he spent in the forest. The amount of blood indicated a serious injury, most likely a deadly one. Since Shujinko appeared to be relatively healthy, the blood had to come from an injury inflicted on someone else. The bandages wrapped around his right thigh only further inspired his suspicions.

Third, his facial expressions and voice tone. Kakashi was no stranger to wearing masks. Not just real life ones like the dog mask he used to wear during his ANBU days, but emotional masks as well. Shujinko might be an exceptional Genin regarding a lot of aspects, but there were many things he still couldn't do, and successfully wearing a blank mask despite whatever he was feeling on the inside was one of them. He didn't even have to look at his student to know there was something troubling him. His dry and almost absent voice said it all. There was something going on with Shujinko, and Kakashi didn't like that in the slightest.

'Iruka told me there was definitely something going on with Shujinko. Now I see what he was talking about.' Kakashi thought as he had a pretty good idea what had happened to Shujinko, but he needed to hear it from him. "I'm afraid I can't do that. We Jounins are supposed to avoid interacting with our students until the fifth day. If Hokage-sama finds out that I came here to check up on you four, he'll most likely talk my ear off. Anyways, you should get some sleep. You'll need it for tomorrow. Ja ne!" And just like Iruka did not too long ago, Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke.

* * *

 _Shujinko found himself wandering around Konoha's cemetery, wearing black pants and a black shirt, the traditional outfit to wear on a funeral. He wiggled his toes, feeling the wet grass beneath his feet. A gentle breeze shook some of his hair. Taking a deep breath, Shujinko started walking around the cemetery, reading the epitaphs of the gravestones he came across._

 _A certain gravestone caught his attention. Unlike the rest of the gravestones he had seen so far, this one had the symbol of Takigakure carved above the epitaph._

 _Frowning in confusion, he approached the tomb and read the epitaph._

 _'Hadeki'_

 _'A loyal shinobi who was taken away from us far too early'_

 _'May his soul rest in peace'_

 _Shujinko's heart almost went haywire. He watched in horror as the gravestones around him suddenly had the same village symbol and epitaph as the one he just read. His body started to tremble and his legs began shaking. 'What is this? W-What is going on?' he thought as he started to panic. The last thing he remembered was going to sleep. He was supposed to be in the tower with the rest of his team, not wandering around Konoha's cementery._

 _A tap on his shoulder made him turn around._

 _TWUUT_

 _Before he could react, a hooded man wearing a black cloak held Shujinko's shoulder and stabbed him in his stomach using a kunai. Shujinko's eyes went wide in shock as he looked down and saw the blood pouring out of the wound. His body began twisting in nerve-wracking pain as a chunk of blood escaped out of his mouth. He tried to say something, but only more blood came out. The hooded man pulled the kunai back from Shujinko's stomach and started laughing while Shujinko covered his bloody wound with his hand, resting his back against one of the gravestones and struggling to maintain his breath._

 _"It hurts, doesn't it? Stupid gaki."_

 _The cloaked man straightened up, allowing Shujinko to see his face. The heart of the golden-eyed boy almost exploded when he recognized the individual in front of him._

 _"Ha-Hadek-kki?"_

 _"What, surprised to see me?"_

 _"No... No way. This is just a dream. You... You're supposed to be..."_

 _"Dead?" Hadeki chuckled. His pupils suddenly transformed into slits and his eyes were now a dark shade of yellow. His blond hair grew long and darker until it was as black as the sky during a summer night. Even his skin was paler than usual. Shujinko tried to crawl away from him, but the wound on his stomach was deep and he was losing blood very fast, continuingly weakening his body. Hadeki opened his mouth and licked the blood stained kunai with an unnaturally long tongue. "Oh, I wouldn't know about that... Shujinko-kun. Now, allow me to explore the secrets of your body."_

 _The last thing Shujinko saw before everything went black was Orochimaru carving his sharp fangs into the left side of his neck..._

* * *

Shujinko woke up violently, gasping for breath and sweating bullets. He immediately lifted two fingers and reached for the left side of his neck, the same spot where Sasuke had been marked. He felt nothing but sweat. Just to make sure there was nothing wrong with him, Shujinko lifted his soaking t-shirt and carefully examined his abdomen. There were a couple of dirt spots here and there, but other than that he was fine.

Well, as fine as he could be right now.

"That was quite the nightmare you were having."

Shujinko was startled by the voice of Kakashi. His first reaction was to draw a weapon, but his tools were hidden under his bed. The silver-haired Jounin remained immobile, resting his back against the corner of the room with his arms folded. Shujinko let out a sigh. "Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing here? You said you weren't allowed to visit us."

"I came here because I need to talk to you. Here..." Reaching for his back pouch, Kakashi took out a tightly packed t-shirt and threw it to his student, who caught it with a befuddled look on his face. The t-shirt was exactly like the one he used to wear, plain white with no logos or symbols. "I hope I got your measures right. It's not much, but I think you'll like it better than the one you're wearing."

Quietly muttering his thanks, Shujinko took off his t-shirt and tried on the one his sensei just gave him. It was a little itchy, but at least it was clean and it fit him just right. Then, a pause. "... You didn't come here just to give me a spare t-shirt, did you?"

Kakashi nodded. "That's right. Follow me." The Ozuma rubbed his eyes and sleepily made his way outside the room, not even bothering to put his sandals on. Kakashi walked down some stairs and lead Shujinko to the lunch counter, the both of them as silent as graves in the middle of the night. There were a couple of round tables in the lunch counter, and Kakashi signaled Shujinko to sit on a specific one. Shujinko obliged, albeit begrudgingly so. He was starting to feel annoyed by the secrecy of the situation he suddenly found himself in. Kakashi sat down in front of him.

"Are you gonna tell me what are we supposed to be doing here, Kakashi-sensei?" Shujinko asked. His voice was low and groggy. "If this is part of the Chunin Exams, then shouldn't we wake-"

"This has nothing to do with the Chunin Exams." Kakashi interrupted him. "This is about telling me what happened to you these past few days in the forest."

Shujinko blinked once, twice, thrice. His mouth twitched. "Nothing happened to me. I'm here, and so is the rest of my teammates. That's all that matters."

"... Even after all of this time, you still suck at lying." Kakashi said as a matter of fact. "You're not acting like you usually do. My only guess is that something happened to you and that something is eating you up inside. And before you try to give me some cheap excuse as an answer, remember who you're talking to. I've lived longer than you have, kid. I know when my comrades have problems, and you still have a long way to go before you can actually keep things from me. Now, are you going to tell me what's wrong with you or do I have to keep pressing the matter?"

Anger flashed in Shujinko's eyes. "There's nothing wrong with me. And quite frankly, even if there was something wrong with me, it wouldn't be any of your business."

"Let me worry about what is and what is not my business. You worry about giving me an honest answer. What happened in the forest?"

"Nothing happened in the forest! Why do you keep asking?"

"For the same reason you keep lying to me. Your frustrations are getting the better of you."

Shujinko huffed. "Right, because there's nothing frustrating about being interrogated by my sensei 04:00 A.M. in the morning after spending four days in a forest. I'm having the time of my life right now."

"Shujinko."

"What!?"

"Let it go." Kakashi said as he leaned in closer to the golden-eyed boy. Shujinko gave him a startled look. "You're feeling remorseful and bitter because you're experiencing an internal conflict. You don't like that, and you keep telling yourself that there's nothing wrong with you because you hate to show weakness in any way, shape or form. I know how you are, Shujinko. You try to be the very best shinobi you can be, ignoring the pain that path brings. And while ignoring the pain inside may seem ideal to you, but trust me when I say you don't want to live like that for the rest of your life. Being a shinobi means learning how to control your emotions, but controlling your emotions is not the same as blocking them forever. It's a journey we all must go through. I know what you did, I've seen the face of guilt and suffering more times than I could possibly count."

The Ozuma felt a rock materialize inside his throat and his body began shaking. Despite trying his hardest, his eyes became watery and salty, unable to stop the incoming tears that were threatening to appear. "If... If you already know what I-I did, then why do you want me to te-ell you?" Shujinko asked with trembling lips.

"Because you need to acknowledge your wound before you can heal it." came Kakashi's answer. "A broken arm will never heal itself, especially if you keep telling yourself your arm is fine. Embrace the pain and learn from it. You have to let it go..." Kakashi made a pause to allow Shujinko to take in his words. He then placed his hand on Shujinko's shoulder and gave him a soft look. "... and it all starts from there."

Shujinko felt something snap inside his heart, and this time he knew he wasn't going to keep a straight face. The pain he had stored ever since the death of Hadeki started to escape from its iron cage. It was as if his porcelain mask of uncaringness suddenly fell to the ground and shattered in a million pieces. Shujinko gritted his teeth and started sniffling, feeling a pain inside his chest like nothing he had experienced before. No physical injury he had ever suffered felt remotely similar. Eventually, his despair was too much for him to handle and, for the first time since his battle with Haku and Zabuza, he allowed himself a moment of weakness and started crying.

Kakashi was absolutely right, Shujinko realized. He was hurt. He was scared. He was tired. He was confused. Hadeki's death and his encounter with Orochimaru had affected him greatly, but he didn't want to besmirch his honor as a shinobi by displaying what he believed to be a sign of weakness in front of his team, and much less in front of his sensei. Ninjas weren't meant to show emotions.

He even went as far as telling himself that killing someone was something akin to a ritual passage that everyone had to go through if they wanted to call themselves a true shinobi. It really wasn't that far from the reality of the ninja lifestyle. Most ninjas had their first kills during puberty, and some of them were even younger. It was extremely unlikely, if not right out impossible, to find a grown shinobi who had never killed before.

That was what he desperately wanted to believe. He wanted to believe that he absolutely had to kill Hadeki, that he had no other choice but to do it. He didn't kill Hadeki out of rage or vengeance. His body reacted out of pure survival and self-preservation. If there was someone to blame for the whole incident, it sure as hell wasn't him. He was only defending himself.

That was precisely what confused him. Why was he feeling so bad for killing someone who wanted to kill him, and even tried to? Why was he suffering when his actions were completely understandable? Why was he feeling so much remorse when the only thing he had to keep in mind was his teammates and himself? Hadeki clearly had every intention of killing him, and Shujinko even attempted to negotiate with him and his team before the fight came to be. He doubted any other competitor would've done the same. If only that idiot would've accepted the fake scroll, nothing would've happened.

But he didn't. Instead, he attacked Shujinko, underestimated him and lost control of his emotions, which resulted in his death. How was that Shujinko's fault?

It wasn't, yet he still felt horrible.

Then Orochimaru came into the picture. He caught the attention of the Snake Sannin back in the forest, and there was no way that could be good. Orochimaru gave Sasuke that strange mark on his neck after offering power, though why would he offer power to Sasuke was beyond him. Then, he faced Shujinko and told him he was interested in him and the secrets his body held. Shujinko assumed he was talking about the Karura Tensei, because what other secrets could there possibly be hidden in his body? But that wasn't the point. The point was that Orochimaru wanted him, and there was nothing Shujinko could do about it. He and Sasuke fought him with all of their strength and combined the power of their two bloodlines, only to find out the Sannin was shamelessly playing with them and testing their skills. That had to be the most intense fight Shujinko had ever taken part of, but his efforts were only good enough to survive (and he only survived because Orochimaru wanted him to). The difference between their power was simply huge.

Which led to the next issue: If Orochimaru wanted to capture him and use him for whatever gruesome experiments he had in mind, then he could. What could Shujinko possibly do about it?

The answer was simple: Nothing. That was probably the scariest thought of all, to know that there was a Sannin out there who wanted to explore his body through undoubtedly disgusting means. The feeling was just too much.

Shujinko kept sobbing until he ran out of tears. Kakashi simply sat in front of him in complete silence, waiting for the boy to call himself. "I... I killed someone, Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko whispered.

Although Kakashi remained stoic, he sighed inside his mind. For some reason, Shujinko always seemed to be the first of his students in almost everything. He was the first to witness Naruto under the influence of the Kyuubi, the first to know about Naruto's status as a Jinchuriki, and now he was the first to kill someone.

Kakashi had been dreading this day ever since he became Team 7's Jounin sensei. Explaining the concept of death to a student was one thing, but dealing with a student who just had his first kill was another issue entirely. What was more important, he knew there was only so much he could do to comfort the boy. Killing was part of the shinobi lifestyle, and probably one of the toughest lessons a Genin could ever learn. Shujinko had to accept the fact that he killed someone and move on with his life. Nobody held Kakashi's hand when he had his first kill, and he wasn't about to do the same thing for Shujinko because he knew the pain he was suffering right now would eventually make him stronger and more resilient, a better shinobi. Was it harsh? Was it unfair?

Maybe, but the life of a ninja wasn't exactly easy. Kakashi knew that better than most.

"Is it wrong?" Shujinko suddenly asked. "Is... Is it wrong that I... That I feel bad about it? He was trying to kill me and... and I didn't know what I was doing. My body just... reacted."

"Shujinko, if you weren't feeling bad right now, I'd be a lot more worried. Do you remember what we talked about that night back in Tazuna-san's house? The idea of killing someone frightened you, and that was when I knew you were going to be the first among my students to receive this lecture from me. We shinobis may be tools of war and death, but even tools like us have feelings and experience emotions. Duty, loyalty, service, sacrifice, and just about every other relationship between a ninja and his village come from feelings, no matter how much we forget about them. You grew up in a time of peace and you are fortunate enough to have a caring family behind you. That's why knowing you killed someone affects you the way it does. Nevertheless, you are first and foremost a human being, Shujinko, and you shouldn't feel bad about yourself for admitting weakness."

"But sensei, I'm supposed to be a shinobi." Shujinko retorted. His voice was steadier than before, and even though his eyes were still red and puffy, he was no longer crying. "If killing someone made me feel this weak, what am I supposed to do in the future?"

The Hatake rubbed his chin. "To answer that, there's something I need to know first. Were Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke with you when all of this happened?"

Shujinko shook his head. "I left them before they found me."

Kakashi's face became more serious. "You left your teammates behind?" he asked incredulous. It didn't sound right. Ever since he met Shujinko, the brown-haired boy always seemed to look out for his teammates.

"I had to." Shujinko responded. "Naruto and Sasuke were unconscious, and Sakura was too weak to fight. There was a team coming our way. We couldn't fight them and take care of those two at the same time, so I took a fake scroll and left Sakura to look out for Naruto and Sasuke. She's the medic of the group and she's not supposed to be exposed to danger." he explained, hoping that his logic would get through Kakashi. Shujinko felt a shot of guilt inside his chest. Even if he saved Sakura from Hadeki and his two cronies, he couldn't protect her from that Oto team, which ended up in her getting badly beaten.

"... I see." Kakashi said after a while. Shujinko's voice was steady and he couldn't detect any lies, which calmed him a great deal. Shujinko may have abandoned his teammates, but it was out of protection and self-sacrifice, not cowardice or selfishness. "Why were Naruto and Sasuke unconscious? What happened to them?"

Shujinko proceeded to tell Kakashi about Team 7's meeting with Orochimaru. He told him how Naruto released a tiny bit of the Kyuubi's chakra after Orochimaru's taunting, how Orochimaru subdued Naruto by burying his chakra-infused fingertips deep inside his gut, how he and Sasuke fought their hearts out against the Snake Sannin and lost, how Orochimaru promised Sasuke to give him power before giving him a strange mark on his neck and called it a 'parting gift', and finally how Orochimaru expressed his interest in the Karura Tensei and how he would eventually come and investigate his body. By the end of the tale, Kakashi was frowning in despair. He heard about the latest reports given by Anko, and Shujinko's story matched Orochimaru's description. The Snake Sannin's mere presence in the village was more than enough to stop the Chunin Exams, but life was never simple. It took the village months and months of preparations to finally be the host of the Chunin Exams, and people were travelling from far away just to become spectators of the third round, which was said to be the most exciting part of the Chunin Exams. Should they stop the Chunin Exams right now, the village was bound to lose as much income as credibility and image.

"... and that's all that happened so far." Shujinko said as he finished telling Kakashi about Orochimaru.

"These sure are troubling news." Kakashi replied. "Orochimaru has been interested in the power of the Sharingan before he even left the village. Now that Sasuke is the only Uchiha around, it's safe to assume that Sasuke has become Orochimaru's target. We must be very cautious from here on out."

"What about you, Kakashi-sensei?" Shujinko asked, causing Kakashi to blink in surprise. "You may not be an Uchiha, but you still have a Sharingan. Doesn't that make you a target of Orochimaru as well?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Orochimaru has no interest in me."

"But how do you know? There are only three people alive who hold the Sharingan, so Orochimaru can't afford to be picky, right?"

It was only after he finished speaking when Shujinko realized what he just said. Kakashi was giving him a hard look. "Three people? Besides me and Sasuke, who else could have the Sharingan?" Even if he made it look like a question, Shujinko could easily tell he was being ordered to reveal what he knew.

"Sasuke... When we were fighting Haku, he told me and Naruto about his brother. He didn't told us his name or anything, he just told us his brother was still out there, and I suppose that, if this man is Sasuke's brother, then he most likely also has the Sharingan. But I don't get it. Sasuke is supposed to be the only Uchiha alive. Who's his brother? How he survived? Where is he right now?"

"Those are questions you will not be asking Sasuke, Shujinko. I mean it. Don't ever talk to Sasuke about his brother."

"But wh-"

"Shujinko, I know you're curious, but for your own good, keep yourself from bringing this subject up ever again." Kakashi said as he stood up. "Now, before you go upstairs and get some sleep, let me tell you this: You may have killed someone, but feeling bad because of it doesn't make you any less of a shinobi. It's a long and painful lesson to learn, but it's something we must all go through if we want to make it out alive. I'm not telling you to take pride in the fact that you killed, I'm telling you that you did what you had to do in order to protect your comrades. It won't be pretty, but you'll get over it eventually. Also, don't be afraid to reach me if you feel the need to discuss this. As your sensei, it's my duty to look after you four and make sure you grow into the fine shinobi I know you all can be. I was also your age once, and my sensei was an exceptional man who saw my pain and helped me step outside the wrong path of life. I don't blame you if you don't want to talk about this with Sasuke, Naruto or Sakura, but never allow this pain of yours to make you forget who you are. I happen to like you well enough." Kakashi's facial expression softened and Shujinko could've sworn there was a small smile hiding beneath his mask. "After all, Team 7 wouldn't be the same without their second-in-command, ne?"

Shujinko couldn't help but let out a watery chuckle. While it was still present, the pain inside his chest wasn't as heavy or as cutting as it used to be. He felt… better, he supposed, and also slightly warmer. All thanks to a few minutes of conversation with the lazy pervert he had for a sensei. "I guess not… Sensei, if you don't mind me asking, who was your sensei? We've been part of Team 7 for quite a while now, but you've never told us much about yourself other than… well, next to nothing."

"You want to know about my sensei?" Kakashi asked. "My sensei was a man of both strength and wisdom. He was honest, selfless and caring, with an unshakeable will to protect our village. A hero who never hesitated to sacrifice himself in favor of the village and those who surrounded him… among several other things."

"And his name was…"

"… If I told you who my sensei was, you probably wouldn't believe me. Maybe some other day I'll tell you more about my sensei. Now, it's time for you to listen to your sensei and go to sleep. Hokage-sama and the rest of the proctors will be waiting for the teams to show up at 13:00 P.M. in the Arena, where the third part of the Chunin Exams will be explained."

"Very well. Thanks for everything, Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko said as he stood up.

"Don't mention it, kid."

Before leaving the food court, Shujinko did one thing he never expected himself to do. He approached his sensei and gave him a short, soft hug. While it definitely felt awkward, it wasn't AS awkward as he thought it would be. Kakashi, who wasn't prepared for this, replied by ruffling Shujinko's hair affectively, the same way he did with Naruto. Minato-sensei used to do the same thing to him, so he decided he was entitled to ruffling his students' hair as well. After a short pause, Shujinko stepped back and scratched the back of his head and looked down at his feet, apparently embarrassed. "Sorry for that. I-I was-"

"Mah, mah, think nothing of it. Now please go to sleep before I drag you over to your room."

"Right. I just wanted to… It's not like… Yeah, I'll just go now. Good night, Kakashi-sensei."

"Good night, Shujinko."

* * *

Aaaaaand that was chapter 21.

It's been quite a while since I last updated this story. 40 days if I'm not wrong. This chapter was quite difficult for me to write, mainly because this was centered in Shujinko's feelings and not the progression of the story. Still, this was something that had to be addressed: It was Shujinko's first kill. I simply couldn't neglect the aftermath and it also ended up in something that is vital for Shujinko's character development, which is the strengthening of Shujinko and Kakashi's bond as student and teacher. I hope Kakashi's reactions and dialogue were believable.

Anyways, it will take some time before I finish a new chapter. I'm currently very busy with my studies.

Ja ne!


	22. Chapter 22 (part 1)

**CHAPTER 22: THE PRELIMINARIES (PART 1)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

The Tower Arena was quite impressive, Shujinko admitted to himself. It consisted in a rectangular space with concrete walls and floor. There was a giant statue of two hands performing the Ram handsign placed behind a seat where the Hokage was currently sitting on, surrounded by proctors and Jounins. There was also a big screen placed on one side of the Arena, although Shujinko still couldn't quite figure out its purpose.

'I didn't expect these many teams to get through the Forest of Death.' the Ozuma thought as he carefully checked out the rest of the participants. They were all waiting in parallel line formations for the Hokage to make his announcement. Apart from Team 7, Team Kurenai and Team Asuma were there as well, meaning that every single one of the Rookie Ten made it out alive. Team Gai was also present, and so were the Suna and Oto teams. Among the crowd, Shujinko recognized Kabuto, who was accompanied by his two teammates. There were only 22 survivors out of the dozens and dozens of teams that entered the forest five days ago. 'And I'm one of them.'

"Alright, first things first, congratulations to all of you for finishing the second exam. It's been a while since we had these many candidates left." Anko said with the use of a wireless microphone placed around her neck. 'Looks like Ibiki was right after all. It's been years since we had more than three teams to deal with after the second exam, and most of these guys are rookies. They're a tough bunch.'

"Would you look at that? Your team actually made it this far." Maito Gai whispered to his old rival, who was standing right next to him. "They must be quite resourceful... or maybe they were lucky? Ah, it hardly matters anymore. Their next test has to do with skill, and my team is far more experienced and prepared than yours. Oh well, I suppose part of growing up is to learn how to endure defeat. Wouldn't you agree, Kakashi, my old rival?"

"... Mhm? Sorry, I wasn't really listening. Were you saying something, Gai?"

Kakashi's lack of interest caused Gai to close his fists in anger and mutter things like 'rival... cool, hip and trendy attitude... revolutionary reactions... our next challenge... power of youth...'

'So that's Shujinko's sensei, huh?' Tenten thought as she looked at the silver-haired Jounin. 'Well, he doesn't looks like much, but he sure beats Gai-sensei in the looks department.'

Lee tightened his right fist as flames replaced his eyes. 'Just you watch, Gai-sensei! I swear I will make you proud!'

'As expected, only the strongest candidates remain in the competition.' Neji thought as he turned around and watched Sasuke and Shujinko. 'Uchiha Sasuke and Ozuma Shujinko...'

Anko cleared her throat before raising her voice. "Anyways, Hokage-sama wishes to share a few words with you, so keep your mouths shut and listen closely. This will be about the procedure of the Chunin Exams. Hokage-sama, they're all yours."

"Thank you, Anko. Now, before we reveal the nature of the third exam, I find it necessary to explain a few things about the test itself. It is of vital importance that you understand this. While the Chunin Exams gives our village the chance to toughen our shinobi and to improve our relationships with the rest of our allies, the true purpose of these exams is to display our military strength and show the rest of the villages that participate our battle prowess." the old man took a puff of his tobacco pipe, granting the Genins some time to process the weight and meaning of his words. "No shinobi village can afford to look weak in front of its allies, especially during times of uncertainty. Therefore, we look for two things in the Chunin Exams: To grant the qualified prospects the rank of Chunin and bring pride to our nation, and send a subtle message to our allies while we are at it. The more battle expertise we show, the more mission requests our village receives, which ultimately results in the invigoration of our country."

"Okay, I get it, but why do we have to be the ones to risks our lives?" Kiba voiced his thoughts.

"Because the strength of a nation is the strength of its shinobi, and only when a shinobi is pushed to its limits is when strength can be acquired. It is imperative for the younger generations to show promise while the older and more experienced generations are tasked with the security of the village."

Ino stepped in. "So we're supposed to improve our relationships with our allies by fighting them? That makes absolutely no sense."

The aged Sarutobi took another puff before answering. "Friendship between villages is not what you think it is. The Chunin Exams is also a chance for the lesser shinobi villages to turn the tides to their favor. The balance of strength, in the shinobi world, is considered friendship."

Even though Naruto had a great deal of admiration for his grandparent figure, he couldn't help but think his definition of friendship was stupid. What sort of friendship between villages was that? True acts of friendship were born out of actions, and maybe even words in certain cases. If a village wanted to be allies with another, then they had to help each other out, not kill their ninjas just for the sake of showing strength. If that was friendship in the shinobi world, then he didn't even want to think what enmity between villages was.

"This is the reason why the third exam will be a fight to the death between candidates." Hiruzen said with finality. "All of this will be explained-"

"Hokage-sama, with your permission," a Jounin spoke up. He had pale skin and long, dark brown hair that was covered almost completely by his bandana headband. His most distinctive feature, however, were the black circles under his eyes. It became obvious to the Genins that the man was sick. I would like to (cough cough) explain the details of the third exam, and our current situation (cough cough cough)."

The Sandaime nodded. "By all means, please do."

The sickly-looking Jounin nodded in return and faced the crowd. "Hello, my name is Gekko Hayate, the design- (cough cough cough), designated proctor of the third exam. Listen carefully because (cough cough cough cough), because I'm only going to say this once (cough)."

'Someone get this guy some cough syrup.' Shujinko thought absentmindedly.

"Under normal circumstances, we would proceed to explain the third ex- (cough cough) exam and call it a day, but unfortunately we have to deal with a little problem. You see, we didn't expect to have these many participants after the second exam, and we can't allow all of you to take part in the third exam for a number of reasons, but mainly because (cough cough cough cough), because the third exam will be a public affair and we are limited in time. With this in mind, we decided to (cough) to do a preliminary test."

"A preliminary test?" Naruto asked while narrowing his eyes.

"That way, the number of participants will be redu- (cough cough cough) reduced. This preliminary test consists in a round of combats were opponents will be randomly chosen to fight one another. Your names will only be called once, so you only have to fight (cough) one time. The winners get to participate in the third exam while the losers will be eliminated from the Chunin Exams."

Shujinko let out a tired sigh. This was... he didn't even have a word to describe it. Out of all things, what he desired the less right now was to fight. He just wanted to go home, eat sushi, take a long and hot shower, spend time with Nanami, even getting scolded by his mother sounded appealing. And here he was, about to fight with a random opponent just so he could enter the third exam. In times like these, he wondered if becoming a Chunin really was worth it.

"These preliminaries, when do they start?" Tenten asked.

"Immediately."

"Immediately?" Choji repeated in disbelief. "But we just got done with the second exam! We need time to eat and rest!"

"This whole thing is just too troublesome." Shikamaru commented, looking tired and annoyed at the same time.

Hayate coughed a little before speaking again. "If any of you wants to step out and quit, now's the time. Raise your hand and say your name loud and (cough cough) and clear. You'll be escorted outside by one of us."

Kabuto's face remained impassible as he remembered the little talk he had with his master not too long ago.

' _Flashback'_

 _"Orochimaru-sama, how was your investigation trip? Any interesting results?"_

 _"Indeed, Kabuto-kun. I found what I was looking for, and something else." Orochimaru replied as he licked his lips. "Sasuke-kun is still young, but his hatred and his thirst of revenge are more than enough for me to work with. His Sharingan is still developing, but under my watch, it will mature greatly. Once he discovers the power of the Curse Mark, he will grow hungry and ask for more. The only thing he needs is a little push, and I have every intention of giving him one."_

 _Kabuto nodded. "I see. And what about that something else?"_

 _"Khu khu khu, I found an intriguing little fellow during my hunt for Sasuke-kun. A young boy named Ozuma Shujinko who happens to be Sasuke-kun's teammate. The two of them fought me, and while his skills alone were worthy of applause, what really caught my attention was a strange ability that he possessed. A Kekkei Genkai from the looks of it. I am willing to bet that Kekkei Genkai has something to do with Senjutsu."_

 _"A Kekkei Genkai that involves Senjutsu?" Kabuto questioned with a frown. "Is it anything like Juugo's Kekkei Genkai?"_

 _"A connection between those two may be possible, but the differences between one another are very noticeable. This boy's Kekkei Genkai was considerably more stable and effective. I have investigated the Sharingan through various means, and I have witnessed its power on more than one occasion, but the power this boy possesses is new to me, and I need to see it in action again." Orochimaru gave his subordinate a nasty smile. "And that is where you come in, Kabuto-kun."_

 _"Me? I thought my job was to keep an eye out for Sasuke-kun's team and ensure his team passed the second test. Luckily, my intervention was unnecessary, but now that his team has reached the tower, I don't know how I can approach them without making them suspicious. The girl with the pink hair and the boy with whiskers seem naive enough, but I don't think Sasuke-kun and Shujinko-kun will trust in me with ease. And besides, wasn't I supposed to drop out of the Chunin Exams after completing the second exam?"_

 _Orochimaru chuckled. "That was the plan, yes. But now that Shujinko-kun came into the picture, I have decided to prolong your farce. There will be a preliminary test, and instead of having you quit the exams like I originally wanted you to do, I will make sure you end up with him. Remember, you must make the boy activate his Kekkei Genkai, or else I won't be able to analyze it properly. Are we clear?"_

 _"Cristal clear, Orochimaru-sama."_

 _"Good. Oh, and one more thing."_

 _"Yes?"_

 _"Do not fail me, Kabuto-kun. You might be valuable, but you are not priceless, and you are certainly not unreplaceable."_

' _Flashback ends'_

Sasuke grunted in pain and placed a hand on the left side of his neck, biting his lips to the point where he could almost taste blood. The Curse Mark was acting, begging him to use it. It took Sasuke a great deal of willpower to prevent that from happening. What was worse, he couldn't activate his Sharingan or use a portion of his chakra without activating the Curse Seal, and now he had a preliminary round to worry about. If that wasn't enough, there was a part of him that wanted to stop repressing the influence of the Curse Mark and allow himself to explore the new power that Orochimaru gave him. His rational-self told him not to do it... yet. He had a new source of power, but it was power that he couldn't control. If he could somehow manage to control the power instead of having the power controlling him...

The golden-eyed boy was standing behind Sasuke, and it was clear to him that Sasuke wasn't having the time of his life. He prayed to Kami that his teammate wouldn't allow the mark on his neck to spread and go on a rampage. "Sasuke, if the mark is giving you trouble, maybe you should quit."

Sasuke looked over his shoulder and glared at Shujinko. "I'm fine."

"That's a lie and we both know it. You haven't been the same since we got here."

"You're one to talk." Seeing Shujinko's baffled expression, Sasuke elaborated. "You think I don't know what you did back in the forest? Start minding your own business and leave me alone."

Shujinko's face went pale and his mouth became very, very thin. The death of Hadeki was still fresh in his mind, and even though talking about it with Kakashi helped him, he still had a hard time living with it. He killed someone, yes. But he didn't need to be called out on that, and most certainly not by his arrogant and holier-than-thou teammate. "Be careful, Sasuke. One more word and I swear I'll tell everyone about the mark. I don't care if you're my teammate, you'll be out of the Chunin Exams before you even know it."

Sasuke turned around completely and stared at his teammate with a menacing look. "If you tell anyone about the mark-"

"- I will if you don't keep your mouth shut." Shujinko said while tightening his fists. 'Not that it matters, anyway. I already told Kakashi-sensei.'

The Uchiha heir sneered, but otherwise remained silent. He could tell Shujinko wasn't bluffing, and stepping out of the Chunin Exams was not something he planned to do.

"Sasuke-kun, Shujinko is right." Sakura started to say. Her voice was low and timid. "I-I know you're in pain right now, and it may get worse over time. Ever since Orochimaru gave you that mark, you've... you've been colder, and I don't like that. Please, please don't do this to yourself. What if-"

"Shut up, Sakura." Sasuke spat.

"No, I won't! You think I'm blind or something? You think I don't know how hurt you are? I just can't keep on with this! And if I have to tell Kakashi-sensei about the mark, then (gulp) then I'll-"

"You just don't get it." Sasuke interrupted her. His voice was surprisingly soft, as if Sakura's words had an impact on him. "I don't care how much suffering I have to go through if that same suffering gives me strength. I told you before, I'm an avenger. Whether I become Chunin or not means less than nothing to me. These exams serve me for one purpose and one purpose only: To become stronger. In order to do that, I have to fight against the best of the best, and the best of the best are all here with me." Images of Neji, Lee, Gaara, Shujinko, and Naruto passed before his eyes. "That's the path I walk, and no one has the right to tell me otherwise. Not you, and not anyone else."

"Oi, teme! Don't you dare talk to Sakura-chan like that!" Naruto called from the front of the line. "She's worried about you, and you don't eve-"

Sasuke faced Naruto with a smirk. "Naruto... You're one of the people I want to fight the most."

Both Naruto and Shujinko were dumbstruck, absolutely speechless. Shujinko never would've imagined Sasuke saying such a thing. Naruto was one of the people he wanted to fight the most? Why? Back in the Academy, Sasuke was always better than Naruto in everything (well, Naruto was the dead-last of the class, so everyone was better than him), and even though he had improved greatly over time, Shujinko was still shocked to learn that Sasuke wanted to fight Naruto. The Ozuma and the Uchiha became rivals when they were still kids, so it was only natural for Shujinko to feel like Sasuke's main competitor. But now, Sasuke was acknowledging Naruto as a rival, or at least someone who shouldn't be underestimated. Apparently, Naruto was thinking among the same lines, and he seemed to be quite happy if the goofy smile on his face was anything to go by.

"Alright, since there are no volunteers, we'll start with (cough cough cough cough cough), we'll start with the preliminaries. Your names will appear in that screen over there." Hayate said while pointing at the big screen. Shujinko nodded to himself in understanding. "We have an even number of 22 participants, so we'll have 11 matches. The rules are (cough cough) simple: You will fight until your opponent dies, forfeits, or if any of us proctors interrupts the fight. Since I'm the proctor in charge of this (cough), of this event, I will make sure to over watch every match and intervene if I deem it necessary. As for restrictions, there are none. Now, our system will randomly select the first two participants..."

The screen turned on and started displaying various names. Then, after what felt like an eternity for the brown-haired boy, two names were shown.

 _Akado Yoroi vs Uchiha Sasuke_

Shujinko... he almost wanted to laugh. Fate really wanted to be a bitch, didn't it?

'My name appeared in the screen right off the bat... That's more like it.' Sasuke thought with a smirk, ignoring the increasing pain of the Curse Mark. Hayate signaled them to step forward.

"Akado Yoroi, Uchiha Sasuke, you've been chosen for the first match. The rest of you, please wait in the upper levels. Once the m- (cough cough cough), once the match is over, the screen will show the next competitors." Shujinko gave Sasuke one last look before following the rest of the participants up the stairs.

Kakashi approached Sasuke and whispered something to him, but Shujinko was already too far away and wasn't able to hear what his sensei was telling to the Uchiha. He hoped it was nothing more than just a few words of encouragement and some advice. Once the Arena was clear, Hayate raised his voice. "Do any of you have any objections or wants to forfeit before the match starts?"

The two of them shook their heads in response. Meanwhile, Kakashi joined the rest of his students in the upper level.

"Very well, then... Begin!"

Match number 1: Sasuke vs Yoroi

Yoroi initiated the match by throwing a handful of shurikens at Sasuke, who pulled out a kunai and swatted them away. The moment he was done, Sasuke felt a burst of pain created by the Curse Mark and lost some of his balance. Yoroi took the chance and charged against Sasuke, who jumped back right on time and avoided getting hit by Yoroi's fists. They engaged in a short Taijutsu combat, and while Sasuke had great strength and speed for a Genin, he wasn't nearly at the top of his physical condition and Yoroi had a bigger body built, which usually meant more raw force.

Eventually, Yoroi was able to reach Sasuke and attempted to strike him with a right hook. Sasuke, however, used his opponent's momentum against him and grabbed his arm to throw him into the ground before applying an arm bar against Yoroi. Under normal circumstances, this would've been enough for Sasuke to claim victory, but he had no idea his current position favored Yoroi a great deal.

"Something's wrong." Shujinko said with a frown, interrupting a cheering Naruto.

"What do you mean something's wrong? Look at him, that guy can't do anything right now!"

"Look closely, Naruto." Kakashi said. "If you pay attention, you'll notice it's Sasuke who's having a bad time."

Indeed, Sasuke looked like he was fighting just to keep himself conscious. Yoroi's hand was burning with bright blue chakra, and he was touching Sasuke with it. The raven-haired boy seemed like he was about to fall asleep, but when his vision started to fade, his fighting instincts finally answered and he gathered enough strength to kick Yoroi away. Sasuke managed to stand up, but he was trembling like a leaf whereas his opponent was standing steadily and ready for more.

"What's the problem, gaki? Is that all you got?"

Sasuke would've snarled, but he was too busy keeping himself on his feet. His body was extremely weak, and he felt like he was carrying an extra-large backpack filled with heavy rocks. Half of his concentration was used in staying awake and the other half was used to restrain the influence of the Curse Mark. Yoroi's ability seemed to be a chakra-absorving technique, but he had no idea whether it was some sort of jutsu or a Kekkei Genkai because he couldn't activate his Sharingan. To top it all up, the pain of the Curse Mark was intensifying. It was like fighting with his hands tied behind his back and using only one leg to stand on.

Yoroi charged again, and this time Sasuke was unable to defend himself. The Uchiha heir was tackled into the ground and Yoroi placed his chakra-infused hand on Sasuke's forehead. Slowly but surely, Sasuke started to relent on his attempt to break free from his opponent's grip. Shujinko tightened his fists to the point where his knuckles started to turn white. If Sasuke stayed like that for another minute or two, he could kiss his participation in the third exam goodbye. Or what was worse, that strange mark on his neck could take advantage of Sasuke's weak body state and unleash the terrifying power that it held. Then, much to everyone's surprise, the raven-haired boy found new strength out of nowhere and managed to kick Yoroi off of him.

"Looks like you still have some fight inside of you." Yoroi chuckled. "No big deal, I just need to get my hands on you one more time and you'll be finished."

Naruto was so fed up that he decided to give his teammate some encouragement... in his own special way, that is. "Come on, teme! Is that the best you can do?! I thought the Uchiha clan was supposed to be super strong, but the only thing I see is an idiot that doesn't knows what he's doing! If you're just gonna stand there and let that creepy guy handle you, then you might as well quit now and stop embarrassing yourself!"

His words seemed to miraculously revitalize Sasuke, who gritted his teeth and went into a fighting stance. Naruto struck right where it hurt Sasuke the most: His Uchiha pride. Yoroi smirked under his purple mask and charged against his opponent with his hand glowing with chakra, but before he could reach him, Sasuke ducked down and gave Yoroi a jaw-shattering kick that sent him flying high into the air. But Sasuke didn't stop there; he jumped and positioned himself behind Yoroi, using a technique Lee knew only too well.

"The Kage Buyo? But that is my technique!" Lee exclaimed. "How is Sasuke-kun able to perform it if he has only seen it once?"

Shujinko quickly put two and two together. "You're forgetting something, Lee. Sasuke used the Sharingan against you, and you tried that technique on him. The Sharingan can copy Taijutsu almost perfectly."

"That may be true, but the Kage Buyo requires hours of practice and hard work." Gai said, looking quite impressed. "For Sasuke to perform that technique after watching it just one time... he truly is talented."

Lee's bashfulness only increased when Sasuke continued with his attack. As they descended from the air, Sasuke spun Yoroi around and gave him three blows to his stomach before reaching the concrete floor, finishing all with a kick that probably disintegrated Yoroi's ribs in the process. "Shishi Rendan!" Sasuke roared before he was sent away by his own technique.

'Shishi Rendan?' Shujinko thought with a raised eyebrow. 'That's definitely a new technique, and not one to mess around with.'

Hayate looked at the two participants. One was unconscious and in dire need of medical assistance while the other was breathing heavily and struggling to get on his knees. Well, his decision was rather clear. "I declare this match over. Uchiha Sasuke is the winner of the first round."

"Yeah! That's more like it! Way to go, teme!" Naruto cheered while pumping his fists. Sakura merely placed a hand on her chest in order to calm down her beating heart and took long breaths.

Had it not been for Kakashi's knee, Sasuke's skull would've kissed the concrete floor as he slipped when he tried to get up. A couple of medics came to the Arena and retrieved Yoroi with the use of a stretcher. Meanwhile, Kakashi helped Sasuke to get on his feet, told him he needed medical attention, placed an arm over his shoulders and gave the rest of his students a lazy wave of his hand before disappearing with Sasuke in a puff of smoke. "Huh? Where did they go?" Naruto asked.

"Kakashi-sensei probably took Sasuke to a medical area." Shujinko replied. "Sasuke must be pretty tired right now." The Kyuubi Jinchuriki looked slightly puzzled, but gave a short nod of understanding. 'And hopefully they'll do about that mark of his...'

Shujinko looked at the upper level in front of him, where the Oto team, the Suna team, Kabuto and his other teammate were currently at. He focused his gaze on the Suna team, and he knew something weird was going on. Temari and Kankuro were carefully, almost fearfully, watching their younger sibling. Shujinko's curiosity got the better of him and, hoping that no one noticed, he activated the Karura Tensei to have a better view of Gaara. The boy's face showed no signs of emotion, but he was trembling as he looked at the small crater that Sasuke left on the ground when he performed the Shishi Rendan against Yoroi, and that disturbed Shujinko a great deal.

Why was he trembling? Was he scared of Sasuke? He certainly didn't look scared. As far Shujinko he knew, people only trembled when they were scared or excited, and something was telling him Gaara wasn't someone who got scared easily. Gaara then stopped looking at the crater and stared at Shujinko, his body still shaking. Shujinko felt a chill going down his spine and deactivated his Kekkei Genkai, although he refused to look away if only just to save some of his pride. Just because Gaara made him feel uneasy didn't meant he would allow himself to look scared.

The sound of the screen turning on gave Shujinko the perfect excuse to break his eye-contact with Gaara. Names flashed at high speed until fate decided the nest two opponents.

 _Aburame Shino vs Abumi Zaku_

"Aburame Shino, Abumi Za- (cough cough cough) Zaku, please come down and meet one another in the Arena." Hayate called.

"Tch, about time I got picked. This'll be a piece of cake. Konoha rookies are all wimps." Zaku boasted as he started walking down the stairs. It amused Shujinko that a so-called 'Konoha rookie' dislocated Zaku's arms. Dosu and Kin didn't bother to encourage their teammate, not that Zaku needed any more motivation.

"Alright, Shino. It's your turn. Go out there and show us what you can do. I have full trust in your abilities." Kurenai said. Yuuhi Kurenai was a beautiful woman with black hair and natural red eyes. Shujinko thought she could easily be mistaken for an Uchiha. Heck, her eyes were just like the Uchiha's Kekkei Genkai but without the tomoes. Red was sure an odd color for a pair of eyes that didn't belong to an Uchiha, but then again, he had eyes the color of gold so it wasn't like he could talk.

Kiba and Hinata also gave Shino their support. "Kick his ass, Shino! That dude can't even weave handsigns. There's no way you're gonna lose this match."

"G-Good luck, Shino-kun."

Shino adjusted his glasses and acknowledged their encouragement with a nod before meeting Zaku down in the Arena. The heir of the Aburame clan wasn't really one of Shujinko's closest friends, but they were on polite terms with one another and Shujinko respected the abilities of the Aburame clan. Meanwhile, Shino considered Shujinko to be logical and effective classmate, and since he didn't show aversion towards bugs the way many students used to do back in the Academy, he became one of the few individuals Shino catalogued as a 'pleasant acquaintance'.

The two combatants met face to face. Hayate signaled them to start, and the second match had just begun...

Match number 2: Shino vs Zaku

The second match started a lot more different than the previous one. Shino even took the time to warn his opponent, asking how he was planning to engage him in a fight when he couldn't use his arms and advising him to forfeit now, otherwise his arms may never fully heal. Of course, Zaku laughed at Shino and even started moving his right arm, saying that he only needed one good arm to destroy him. Without any other warning, Zaku launched himself at Shino and tried to take him out with a right hook. Shino effortlessly blocked Zaku's hook with his left arm, but then Zaku opened his palm and attacked Shino with a compressed burst of air, sending the heir of the Aburame clan crashing against the wall.

"What's the problem, freak? Is that all you got? I knew this was gonna be fast, but not THIS fast!" Zaku said with a nasty smile. It made Shujinko want to walk down to the Arena and smack that guy's smug face up, down, left and right. He took the word 'arrogant' to a whole new different level.

Much to his surprise, he heard Kiba snort and say "This guy really is clueless. He has no idea what Shino is capable of. Even I would think twice before messing with him." Shujinko blinked in surprise. Was Shino really that tough of an opponent? Kiba was a ferocious fighter within his own right, and cocky too, so for him to say something like that was quite unexpected. But then again, Kiba was Shino's teammate and probably knew him a lot better than Shujinko did.

"This match is over, but not for me. You should take a better look of your surroundings." Shino said as he slowly stood up.

Zaku's smug expression turned into a confused one. He looked at his left, his right, behind... And that was when he realized. "What the... Are those...?"

"Those are kikaichu bugs, a special breed of insects used by my clan." True enough, an army of black beetles was riding towards Zaku, who had an awestruck look on his face, as if wondering how could it be possible for him to be in the situation he currently was. "Kikaichu bugs are known to eat their prey's chakra, and judging by the amount of bugs I summoned, your chakra will be depleted in less than a minute. If you use your good arm to attack me, the bugs will reach you and the match will be over. If you decide to attack the bugs behind you, I will have more than enough time to defeat you. You cannot hope to take care of me and my kikaichu bugs at the same time with only one arm. Unless you desire to sustain heavy injuries, your only option left would be to surrender."

To say that Zaku looked angry was like saying Shino was a little quiet. The Genin from Otogakure was livid, absolutely enraged. "You bastard... You damn bug-freak bastard! Screw you and every one of your beetle friends!" Zaku roared as he took his left arm out of its sling and pointed at Shino and the kikaichu bugs simultaneously. "You think you can beat me with those pathetic little insects!? Eat this! Zankuukyokuha!"

As soon as Zaku attempted to blow Shino and his bugs away, something happened. His elbows seemed to explode from the inside as chakra burst out of Zaku's palms. His screams filled the Arena and the Genin from Otogakure blacked out, blood pouring out of his mouth and nostrils. "Huh? What happened?" Shujinko asked. "It's like his jutsu got stuck inside his arms and went off out of time."

"That's exactly what happened." Kiba responded with a wolfish grin. "Shino used his kikaichu bugs to distort that guy's chakra flow without him noticing. When he tried that last jutsu... Boom! You saw what happened. Way to go, Shino! You kick ass!"

Shujinko was fairly impressed by Shino's skills. He was silent and didn't look like much, but he sure could be deadly... like an insect. 'He pushed Zaku into a corner with no way out, and when Zaku tried to jump away from him, Shino had already placed a ceiling on top of his head without him noticing. Not bad, Shino. Not bad at all.'

"Zaku is un-(cough cough cough), unable to continue. Aburame Shino is the winner of the second match." Hayate announced as a medical team grabbed Zaku's unconsciouss and destroyed body. Shino calmly walked up to the second level and met his teammates and sensei, who congratulated him on his well-fought battle. Shino merely stated that he expected no less from Kiba and Hinata. "The next competitors will be (cough cough) chosen now, please stay quiet."

BUUZZZZZZZ

 _Tsurugi Misumi vs Saabaku no Kankuro_

Shujinko let out a sigh he didn't even knew he was holding. Neither Naruto nor Sakura noticed him as they were too focused on the two guys that were descending to the Arena. Damn, these preliminaries were really getting to him. Whereas Naruto was just dying to go down there and show everyone what he was about, Shujinko was feeling slightly nervous. He didn't have a plan or a strategy, and his wounded leg was still bothering him. Sakura did her best to heal the cut, but her self-taught medical training could only go so far. There were no medical supplies he could use, and he was almost certain his wound would get infected if he didn't visit a doctor in the next following days. As Kankuro and Misumi reached the lower level, Shujinko started walking away from his teammates.

"Shujinko, where are you going? You're gonna miss the match." Sakura said.

"I need to go to the bathroom. It's not far from here and the match has yet to start. Don't worry, I'll be back soon."

"... Alright, but you better hurry! I wanna see you kick your opponent's ass too! Believe it!" Naruto called. Shujinko stopped and looked over his shoulder. Naruto was grinning challengingly and looking at Shujinko with fierce anticipation, as if he was expecting him to put on a really flashy show just so he could brag about how he was his teammate. It was impossible for Shujinko to hide a small smirk, the very first since the start of the second exam. He straightened his head and continued to walk, hands inside his pockets.

When he got to the bathroom, Shujinko washed his hands, face and hair. He looked at himself in the mirror and started contemplating his chances and the best course of action for him. Just because he had no idea who was he going against didn't mean he couldn't device a strategy, and he had to do it fast. He assumed he wasn't going to face none of his teammates, so he skipped Naruto and Sakura. There were 14 competitors left including himself, so he had 13 possible opponents right now.

He started checking how many supplies he had. Only four kunais, ten shurikens, a Fuuma Shuriken that was snapped in half, and the soldier pills he took away from Hadeki's corpse. If he had to guess, his chakra levels were at 70% right now, and while it wasn't bad, that other 30% he was missing could become an issue if he used too much chakra. His stamina and strength were not at their peak, but he was still able to engage anyone in a hand-to-hand combat, as long as Lee wasn't the one he had to fight.

The Karura Tensei was definitely his ace-in-the-hole, his secret weapon. He was confident his Kekkei Genkai would grant him at least a couple of minutes of advantage over his opponent as long as he used as less Nature Chakra as possible. In his current state and situation, there was no way he could gather plenty of energy before his match without looking suspiscious, and he wanted to avoid that right now. Of course, he would only use the Karura Tensei as a last resort as it would drain a portion of his own chakra and he would be revealing his power before the third exam.

After measuring every possible option he could think of, he decided to follow what he considered to be the best plan: He would engage his opponent with Taijutsu, keep his distance, make use of his decently-sized arsenal of wind jutsus, make his opponent tired before striking him down and only enter Hawk Sage Mode if he had to. Since the Karura Tensei granted a power boost to his Fuuton Ninjutsu, maybe he could wait for an opening and then attack him using a wind style technique. It was risky, but it also was his best shot at winning and, most importantly, survive.

He felt a lot safer now that he knew what he had to do. Having the time to come up with a strategy was priceless in the shinobi world, and he doubted he would be this lucky in the future. He had to become better, faster, stronger, smarter... and he had to become powerful enough to protect himself and his loved ones. Either way, he wasn't going against Orochimaru, and if he could survive him ('Even though he was the one who allowed you to live.' his mind painfully reminded him one more time), then he could survive any of the 13 participants left.

With his mind at ease and his body steady, Shujinko walked out of the bathroom and walked his way to the Arena. Once he got there, he was greeted with the sight of Kankuro walking up to the upper level with a satisfied smile on his face and a couple of medics carrying Misumi's body to the medical area. 'So that Kankuro guy won the match. It didn't take him long. He might look like a clown, but I don't think his skills are anything to laugh at. I wonder who are the next competi... No way.'

 _Yamanaka Ino vs Haruno Sakura_

Out of all the candidates available, Sakura just had to fight Ino, her love rival ever since they were little girls. Shujinko never really pondered much about things like fate and destiny, but he couldn't deny this match really looked like it was meant to be. Sakura and Ino were rivals at everything: Sasuke, looks, popularity (Ino had the upper hand in that aspect), Sasuke again, clothing, grades (Sakura had the upper hand in this aspect)... Sasuke one more time, etc. He supposed their rivalry was somewhat similar to the one he shared with Sasuke, only with two big differences: Sasuke and Shujinko based their rivalry on who was the better shinobi, and Sakura and Ino used to be best friends.

That's right, the Haruno and the Yamanaka used to be best friends during their first years in the Academy, when Shujinko was still a cheeky and naive gaki. The closeness of their bond disappeared when their rivalry over Sasuke came to be, which was the complete opposite of what happened with Shujinko and Sasuke. They used to be strangers in the beginning, and when Shujinko stepped up on his game and became Sasuke's equal, their rivalry brought them closer, if only close enough to make Sasuke acknowledge him. It was funny, Shujinko though, how rivalries either brought people together or distanced them. Naruto and Sasuke's rivalry was the perfect example of how two individuals who hated each other's guts became closer just by competing and Naruto and Sasuke were as different as day and night as far as Shujinko was concerned.

Shujinko reached the upper level, noticing that Kakashi was back in the Arena. His right hand was holding his less-than-dignifying literature, but his eyes were fixed on his only female student. Kakashi turned his head to the left and greeted his brown-haired student with a lazy wave of his free hand. "Yo."

"It's good to see you again, Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko said. "Is Sasuke gonna be alright?"

"I left him in good hands. He's currently going under a medical check-up with a qualified team of doctors. I'll pay him a visit later."

Shujinko nodded. "What about his neck problem? Are the doctors aware of that?"

Translate to: 'What's going to happen with Sasuke and the Curse Mark'

Kakashi gave him a quick look of understanding. "It's gonna be taken care of as soon as the rest of the matches end."

Translate to: 'I'll deal about it later'

"Neck problem?" Naruto asked while squinting his eyes. "What are you guys talking about? What's wrong with Sasuke's neck?"

"Naruto, Sasuke has an injury that hurts his neck. That's the reason why he couldn't fight properly." Shujinko quickly came up with a lie. He didn't like lying to a nice guy like Naruto, but if Kakashi didn't deem it necessary to reveal Sasuke's true injury to Naruto, then neither would Shujinko.

Naruto 'hummed' as he placed two fingers on his chin. "A neck injury... Now that I think about it, Sasuke's been rubbing his neck a lot recently. You think he's gonna be okay?"

"Don't worry, something as puny as a neck injury isn't gonna keep a guy like Sasuke down. Besides, a few days of rest should do the trick." Kakashi responded as he closed his erotic novel.

Naruto snickered. "Heh, you're totally right, Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke's just too stubborn for his own good!"

The Ozuma and the Hatake sweat dropped. 'You're one to talk.'

Back in the lower level of the Arena, Sakura and Ino were engaging in a pre-combat conversation. It was weird, yet completely fitting for a strange reason. It wasn't trash talk between two kunoichis, but a dialogue between two girls who used to be best friends. "I have to admit, I never thought I'd be fighting you, Forehead." Ino started to say. Shujinko was witnessing another side of Ino he had never seen before. He couldn't detect a single trace of playfulness in her voice. This was personal for her, and she was taking Sakura seriously. "Don't think I'm gonna go easy on you."

"I can say the same thing." Sakura replied without missing a beat. "I'm not the weak little girl I used to be. I'm stronger now."

Shujinko agreed with his female teammate... to a degree. Sakura was undoubtedly different from the loud and meek girl she used to be, she was now a respectable teammate and a useful asset to have due to her knowledge and use of Medical-Ninjutsu. But in this case, her strength was also her weak point. Sakura spent so much time studying and practicing her medical skills that her combat skills were slightly neglected. Her Taijutsu was only slightly better than before; her accuracy with the kunai/shuriken was the same as ever, and her Ninjutsu arsenal was nothing to brag about. Shujinko once read about how Medical-Nins were considered as dangerous opponents due to their knowledge on the human body and the amount of techniques they could use against their enemies, not to mention the fact that they could heal themselves. Sakura's only advantage over Ino was her ability to heal herself and her remarkable chakra control... which wasn't really an advantage right now considering that she couldn't hope to be able to fend off Ino and heal herself at the same time.

But still, Shujinko had faith in her. Every member of Team 7 was stronger now, and Sakura was determined to give everything she had. Not because she wanted to impress Sasuke (not mainly at least), but because she wanted to prove herself that she could do it. Besides, it was time for her and Ino to settle their differences.

Hayate coughed before adressing the two kunoichis. "Are you two ready? Then... Begin!"

Match number 4: Sakura vs Ino

Sakura started by running towards Ino and engaging her using Taijutsu, attempting to kick her with her right leg. Ino ducked down and tried to punch Sakura, but the pinkette managed to block Ino's fist. She was about to return the favor, but Ino jumped back and threw three shurikens at Sakura, who threw some shurikens of her own. The metallic stars ran into one another, making a metallic sound and changing their respective trajectory. The heir of the Yamanaka clan attempted to attack Sakura with a roundhouse kick, but Sakura raised her left arm and blocked the kick before attacking Ino with three consecutive strikes, all of them evaded.

"This is hardly a match worth to watch. Those two girls clearly lack hand-to-hand combat prowess." Neji commented as he folded his arms, sounding utterly unimpressed.

Shujinko wanted to say something, but held his tongue. Neji was a member of the Hyuuga, a clan who was infamous for their Taijutsu skills. And according to Lee, he was the strongest Genin of their generation. He obviously knew what he was talking about.

Although not a Taijutsu expert, Shujinko believed himself to be above average when it came to hand-to-hand combat. It wasn't surprising since he trained his body to be as fast and as agile as possible, favoring those two aspects over brute force and complex moves. So far, he had yet to find a fighting style that suited him, so he kept on practicing the basic Taijutsu style that was taught at the Academy, with the exception that he added a few changes here and there to make himself comfortable.

It was clear that the match wasn't going to be settled by Taijutsu. Shujinko wanted to encourage Sakura, but the whole thing seemed like a spar between two last-year Academy students. They weren't even attempting to use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu against one another. Had it not been for the fact that Sakura was his teammate, Shujinko would've completely lost interest on the match.

Tenten gave her teammate a reproachful look. "The fact that they're girls has nothing to do with their skills, Neji. It's just that they still don't want to hurt each other badly. They're obviously hesitating to fight seriously."

"How can you tell?" Shujinko asked with interest. Tenten wasn't part of the Rookie Ten, and as far as Shujinko knew, she had no previous encounters with neither Sakura nor Ino.

"By looking at the way they fight." Tenten explained. "If they really wanted to, they could've taken advantage of several openings, but every time they see one, they either step back or slow down. Those two used to be together in class, right? Something must've happened between them, and even if they want to win, they don't want to go all out."

Shujinko nodded and returned his eyes to the match, although Tenten's explanation was still echoing inside his head. Tenten was clearly an observing and intuitive girl. He would've never thought about it that way, not that he could blame himself. Sasuke would sweep the floor with him if he refused to take advantage of whatever opportunity he had to beat him.

Tenten's point of view was proved when Ino punched Sakura in her stomach, causing her to loose oxygen. Ino had the chance to knock her out and win the match, but when she tried to punch Sakura again, the blonde girl seemed to retract her fist at the last second. Sakura's eyes widened and, gritting her teeth in frustration, she grabbed Ino's wrist with her left hand and used her free hand to hit the Yamanaka across her face hard enough to send to the ground. "Ino, it's about time you step it up and take this fight seriously." Sakura said as she regained her breath. "If you don't, you're gonna regret it."

"Don't get all high and mighty on me, Forehead!" Ino snarled, using her wrist to clean the blood that was coming out of her mouth. "That was a lucky shot and nothing else!"

"We both know that's not true! I already told you I'm not the weak little girl who used to be under your wing all the time! What's wrong, Ino-pig? Afraid that I'll embarrass you in front of everybody?"

Ino looked absolutely murderous. "Me!? Afraid of you!? That has to be the stupidest thing I've ever heard! Sasuke-kun isn't here to see you, so stop pretending to be tough!"

"Don't you get it!? Sasuke-kun has nothing to do with this! This is about me and you, nothing else!"

And that was when Shujinko knew Sakura truly was different from before. She was fighting for herself, to prove herself. Back in the Academy, Sakura never missed the chance to flash her intelligence at Sasuke in an attempt to impress him. She had this idea that, eventually, Sasuke would take an interest on her if she became the best kunoichi of the class, which basically consisted on having the best grades among the female population of the class.

But ever since she became part of Team 7, her image of the ideal kunoichi had dramatically changed thanks to everything she experienced so far. What was more, she started to see Sasuke in a different light. Sasuke wasn't the perfect and attractive boy who showed no emotions and rejected everyone she and every other girl believed him to be. She had seen him showing hesitation and fear, like when they met Orochimaru. She even called him a coward once, something her previous self would've never done. Of course she still loved Sasuke, but now she had the will to put Sasuke aside for the time being and focus on what really mattered. And that was, from Shujinko's perspective, a huge step on the right path.

"What's going on, Kakashi-sensei? Why is Sakura-chan talking to Ino like that?" Naruto asked.

"Because she's tired of having Ino looking at her with pity, as if she couldn't fight back. She knows she's not the same as before, yet Ino either doesn't knows that or refuses to see it, which is why she still can't bring herself to hurt Sakura. It's not a feeling that's hard to relate."

"But that doesn't make any sense at all! I thought they were rivals!"

Kakashi looked at Naruto with his only visible eye and gave him an amused look. 'He can't see that it's the same thing with him and Sasuke.' "Well, rivalry can be a pretty complicated business. I happen to have experience on the matter..." he trailed off as he unintentionally made eye-contact with Gai, who gave the Hatake a thumbs up followed by a flashy grin. Kakashi sweat dropped and awkwardly waved his hand hello. Gai's grin widened in response.

Ino seemed to be lost for words. In the end, she let out a sigh and took off her headband from her waist and placed it around her forehead with Sakura doing the same. Shujinko smirked. In the shinobi world, those who placed their headbands around their forehead in front of their enemy was a sign of recognition, a silent way of saying 'I see you as my equal, and that's why I'm not gonna hold back'. It was one of the very few signs of respect that existed among ninjas.

The rest of the fight was a lot more interesting to watch. Sakura and Ino were truly going all out, neither of them willing to give up. The Haruno started using the few jutsus she knew to her to gain an upper hand, and oddly enough, it worked. She created regular Bunshins in order to confuse Ino and then used her superb chakra control to accelerate her movements, managing to catch Ino off-guard a few times. But Ino wasn't letting herself be pushed around as she retaliated with everything she had. While the two of them were skinny, Ino was slightly taller and stronger than Sakura in body terms, and she used that to her advantage.

After several minutes, Ino decided to reveal her game-changer and attempted to use the Shintenshin no Jutsu, the trademark mind technique of the Yamanaka clan. But before Sakura could get hit by Ino's jutsu, she performed the Kawarimi no Jutsu and allowed a log of wood to take her place instead. The Shintenshin no Jutsu was only effective against living creatures, and while nothing happened to Ino, she ended up losing an important portion of her remaining chakra. However, Sakura was at her limit as well. Mustering all of their strength, the two kunoichis ran against one another and punched each other at the same time, which resulted in a double knockout.

Since neither Sakura nor Ino were standing, Hayate declared the two of them as unfit to continue.

Shujinko was slightly disappointed with the way things ended for Sakura, but he felt proud for her. She gave everything she had and fought bravely against her rival. It was strange, Shujinko thought, but maybe this was exactly what Sakura and Ino needed. They spent so much time calling each other names that they never considered to settle their differences with a fight. Of course, fighting wasn't the answer to everything, but in this particular case, Shujinko felt that good things were going to come out of this match. He just had to wait and see.

Hayate was kind enough to wait for the Haruno and the Yamanaka to wake up before continuing with the preliminaries. They woke up not too later, and even though they knew they lost, they didn't look upset or disappointed. In fact, the two girls were even sporting a small smile on their faces, and they knew exactly why. Punch after punch, kick after kick, jutsu after jutsu, both Sakura and Ino touched base. Their mutual rivalry was still there, but so was their once forgotten friendship.

BUUZZZZZZZ

 _Ozuma Shujinko vs Yakushi Kabuto_

...

Shujinko's smile faded away at the sight of his name being displayed on the screen. His facial expression became as hard as steel. This was it. His time had come. It was his turn to fight. The mere thought made Shujinko skip a heartbeat, although his face remained stoic like a statue.

"Oi Shujinko, you're up! Darn it, when is it going to be my turn? I want to have my shot at this too!" the Kyuubi Jinchuriki exclaimed as he pointed at the screen.

"And you will, Naruto. But right now, it's time for Shujinko to go out there and do what he does best." Kakashi said with his usual bored tone of voice.

"Any advice before the fight?" Shujinko asked his sensei, hoping that his voice wouldn't betray him.

The Sharingan wielder shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing out of the ordinary. Keep your mind clear and avoid getting caught. His two teammates displayed rare short range techniques that worked through physical contact, and I have a feeling Kabuto's abilities are in the same department." After saying those words, Kakashi's aura changed from half-concerned to dead serious. "Shujinko, don't underestimate Kabuto. No one goes through the Chunin Exams six times without learning a few things."

Shujinko gulped and nodded. He completely forgot about the fact that this was Kabuto's seventh attempt to pass the Chunin Exams. Weak and unexperienced Genins perished after their first, second, and maybe third shot at surviving the Chunin Exams, but to survive six times? Kabuto was either unrealistically lucky or something else, and the only way he had to figure him out was to fight him. One thing was sure, if Kabuto was able to go through the Forest of Death and reach the tower in five days or less with both scrolls and in more than one occasion, then he was definitely not a wimp.

The golden-eyed boy reached the Arena, all the while ignoring the curious and expecting looks he received from both upper levels. As he walked towards the meeting point, Tenten slowly approached the rest of Team 7. This was going to be her first time watching Shujinko fight, and she couldn't help but feel a little intrigued. If he was one of the people Lee wanted to challenge, then she supposed Shujinko had to be interesting enough. "Excuse me, you're Shujinko's teammate, right?" Tenten asked the whiskered boy that was next to Sakura.

"Huh? Yeah, what about it?"

"I was just wondering, how strong is he?"

Naruto crossed his arms and raised one hand to rub his chin, as if in deep thought. "He's okay, I suppose. But he's not as strong as me, believe it!" Naruto added with a grin... which didn't last long because Sakura punched the back of his head.

"Baka, stop being so immature!"

"... Sakura-chan... That hurts..." Naruto mumbled with teary eyes as he took care of his abused skull.

Tenten raised a concerned eyebrow. Was this an everyday thing between Shujinko's teammates?

Sakura sighed before addressing Tenten. "Shujinko is strong, and he's really talented too. He and Sasuke-kun were the best students of our class."

Before either of them could say anything else, they heard Kiba snort. "Golden Boy thinks pretty high of himself, but he's nothing special. Me and Akamaru can beat him. Isn't that right, Akamaru?" Kiba asked his puppy, who barked in agreement.

"Oi, take that back! Shujinko is a lot tougher and stronger than you!" Naruto exclaimed with a challenging look. "And in case you don't remember, you never won a spar against Shujinko back in the Academy!"

"That's because I wasn't as strong as I am now, idiot! And in case YOU don't remember, you never won a spar against him as well! Then again, you're the dead-last of the class, so it's not a big surprise."

"Shut up! I could beat you and that stupid mutt of yours any day!"

"Don't call Akamaru stupid, you-"

But before things could get any hotter, Kakashi and Kurenai ordered their respective students to stop their childish argument, which they did, but not before glaring at each other.

Hayate coughed once again, gaining the attention of everyone that was distracted by the shouts of Naruto and Kiba. "Ozuma Shujinko, Yakushi Kabuto, you're about to- (cough cough cough cough), you're about to start the fifth match of the preliminaries. If any of you wants to say something or forfeit, now's the (cough) time."

"I can't give up now, not after everything I had to go through in order to get here." Kabuto said while shaking his head.

"Me neither, let's do this." the Ozuma replied as his right hand casually reached for his back pouch.

"Are you two ready? In that case... Begin!"

Match number 5: Shujinko vs Kabuto

The brown-haired boy and the gray-haired teen jumped back at the same time and threw shurikens at each other. The shurikens clashed and, before they reached the ground, Shujinko was already running against Kabuto, who raised his arm to block Shujinko's flying roundhouse kick. Shujinko immediately tried to perform another kick, but Kabuto grabbed his ankle and threw him against the wall with surprising strength.

But Shujinko wouldn't give up so easily. He recovered while in mid-air and placed his two feet on the wall to push himself forward, this time with a fist directed to Kabuto's face. Kabuto jumped away from Shujinko before he could get to him and pulled out a curved kunai. The Ozuma replied by grabbing two kunais, and the two competitors soon engaged in a dynamic knife battle. Two full minutes passed, and even though Shujinko was trying his hardest to at least touch Kabuto, the gray-haired teen was dodging his every move with almost insulting ease and grace.

Realizing that he wasn't going anywhere, Shujinko decided to change his strategy. The moment he parried Kabuto's incoming slash, Shujinko jumped back and took out his scroll, unsealing his Fuuma Shuriken, the one that Hadeki snapped in half. This 'new version' of his Fuuma Shuriken was now twice as lighter, but also half as dangerous and accurate, which meant that the Ozuma had to throw the tool extra hard to make it a threat.

Kabuto watched the trajectory of the Fuuma Shuriken, and smirked as he leaned back a bit, allowing the tool to pass next to him. The smirk on his face faded away when the other half of the Fuuma Shuriken was coming his way, and this time, it would cut him in two if he didn't move. 'Kage Shuriken no Jutsu. He covered one half of the Fuuma Shuriken behind the shadow of the other half. Not bad.' Kabuto thought as he jumped to his left just in time. But before his feet could touch the ground, Shujinko had already thrown a kunai at the spot he was going to land on and now he was weaving handsigns with incredible speed.

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu!"

One kunai became five, and Kabuto fell right into his hands. Once again, Kabuto managed to escape, but not before earning himself a gash on his right bicep thanks to the real kunai that Shujinko threw. He covered his wound with his left hand and looked behind his back with an awestruck look on his face. "But how..."

"Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu? I do not recall seeing that technique before." Gai said before casting a mischievous grin upon his rival. "I see you have been teaching your students quite a few tricks, eh Kakashi?"

"Actually, Shujinko came up with that jutsu entirely on his own. I had nothing to do with it." came Kakashi's indifferent replay, although there was a hint of amusement in his voice.

Gai seemed to be slightly taken by surprise. "He developed a jutsu without anyone's help? That is... impressive."

"Gai-sensei, what was that jutsu Shujinko-kun just did?" Lee asked.

"Apparently, he applied the concept of the Bunshin no Jutsu and the Henge no Jutsu and created several copies of the kunai he just threw. While those copies are intangible, they serve as a distraction. Because the kunais are moving at a high speed, it is difficult to distinguish between the real one and the copies. Quite crafty, if I do say so myself. And to think that he came up with it on his own..."

With the exception of Team Gai, the rest of the Genins were rather shocked to hear the Taijutsu specialist saying something so... coherent and logic. Kakashi chuckled slightly at that. Gai may look like a complete weirdo with his Kami forsaken spandex suit and bowl cut hair, but in reality, he could be quite intelligent. It was a shame that his intellectual coefficient was often hidden behind his extremely over the top personality.

Tenten was more interested in the fact that Shujinko was able to create a jutsu that had to do with weapons. Judging by her sensei's explanation, the jutsu didn't seem so complex, but it sure was creative. Being the weapon specialist that she was, Tenten could already think of a few other uses for that jutsu. She idly wondered if Shujinko could teach her that technique some other day.

'Alright, so he's not untouchable after all.' Shujinko thought with a small smirk. He reminded himself to save chakra for his wind style techniques and for the Karura Tensei, which he had a feeling he would have to use it later on.

"That was a pretty neat jutsu, Shujinko-kun." Kabuto praised him as he moved his arm in a circular motion, probably to check if the cut would affect his performance. "Unfortunately, I've already figured it out. I'm not falling for the same trick again."

After saying those words, Kabuto launched himself at Shujinko, this time with his right hand glowing with chakra. Shujinko barely had enough time to jump over Kabuto, eyes wide with fear. Kakashi had been right all along. Kabuto was a short-range fighter, and a dangerous one at that. The heir of the Ozuma clan remembered how that Yoroi guy was able to drain Sasuke's chakra, and how Sasuke almost lost to him. He had no intention of getting caught by Kabuto's glowing hand. After successfully going through the set of handsigns, Shujinko inhaled deeply and exhaled a sharp air slash out of his mouth. "Fuuton: Daifuuburo no Jutsu!"

Shujinko watched in irritation as Kabuto evaded his attack once more. How was Kabuto so fast? He was dodging his attacks as if they were nothing while Shujinko struggled just to keep up with him, and he suspected Kabuto wasn't showing his full strength yet. What was worse, Kabuto had all of his chakra whereas Shujinko had barely more than half, and if the match kept going on, Shujinko would eventually loose due to exhaustion.

Suddenly, Kabuto grabbed a handful of smoke bombs and threw them to the ground, creating a large and dense purple smoke that he used to cover himself up with. Shujinko instantly reacted and jumped back with shurikens in both hands, waiting steadily for Kabuto to make the first move. 'Come on, what are you waiting for...'

Two Kabutos came out of the smoke, running towards Shujinko and covering his left and right side so he couldn't escape. Shujinko was about to throw his shurikens at the two clones but then a barrage of kunais appeared from out of the smoke and coming right at him. He couldn't possibly attack the clones without getting killed by the incoming kunais. Therefore, the only thing he could do was to jump over the kunais and the clones as well, which he did.

Bad move.

Shujinko opened his eyes while in mid-air and was unable to detect Kabuto's presence until he was right in front of his face. The gray-haired teen placed his chakra-infused hand on top of Shujinko's forehead, causing the boy to let out a shout of pain and lose his balance. The Ozuma landed on the concrete floor with a loud THUD noise, holding his head with his two hands and gritting his teeth in agony.

'Wh-What the hell did he do to me?' Shujinko thought as he slowly stood up. He felt as if his brain was being stabbed by several ice peaks repeatedly. The pain wasn't unbearable or out of this world, but it sure was... a different kind of pain, he supposed. The only fitting term he could come up with to describe the pain was a 'freezing migraine'.

The pain produced by the headache was suddenly replaced by a sense of intense exhaustion. Shujinko felt a shiver go down his spine and his legs couldn't support him no more. He dropped to one knee and started breathing heavily. What was going on? Why was he so tired all of a sudden? It obviously had to do with Kabuto's technique, but he had never heard of a jutsu that could suck someone's energy that fast. Yoroi had to maintain constant physical contact with Sasuke in order to steal his chakra, but Kabuto only needed one touch to make Shujinko feel fatigued.

"This doesn't look right." Kurenai said while frowning at the sight. In terms of Medical Ninjutsu, she was the most experienced out of the four Konoha Jounins that were present. Although she couldn't recognize Kabuto's jutsu, she could tell it was an advanced technique, far too advance for a Genin. "Hinata, activate your Byakugan. Tell me what do you see inside of Shujinko's chakra pathway system."

"H-Hai." Hinata nodded before activating her Kekkei Genkai. After taking a brief look at Shujinko's chakra, she knew what the problem was. "There's something wrong with Shujinko-kun's tenketsu loca-ated in his brain. A lot of them are altered, and the ch-chakra that flows through them become becomes inact-tive."

"What does that means, Hinata? Did Kabuto do something to Shujinko's chakra?" Naruto asked.

Hinata, who was not expecting to be addressed by the Uzumaki, went bright red and stammered an indecipherable reply. "Close, but not precisely." answered the Hatake on her behalf. "Kabuto didn't attack Shujinko's chakra directly. He attacked the tenketsu located in his brain. If those tenketsu, otherwise known as chakra points, are blocked or altered, chakra can't flow or be used properly." Although his voice didn't waver, Kakashi's only visible eye was staring hardly at Kabuto's triumphant face. It was impossible for a Genin to perform such a complicated technique, and yet Kabuto did it with perfect timing and accuracy. He needed to check Kabuto's profile as soon as the preliminaries were over...

"You might be wondering why you're feeling so tired all of a sudden." Kabuto said out loud. "To cure your curiosity, I simply used a little technique of mine to block some of your tenketsu located in your brain, severely altering its functionality. In other words, I just tricked your brain into believing that you have very little chakra left. It doesn't matter how much chakra you have stored because you can't use it, and if you lose just a little bit of more chakra, your body system will shut down and knock yourself out. A natural self-preserving mechanism, if you will. Now, how much can you take before you pass out?"

Shujinko crossed his arms just in time to block Kabuto's punch, and winced in pain when he felt his bones almost cracking. He couldn't tell if Kabuto was just really physically strong or if he was too tired, but either way, Kabuto attacked again and kicked Shujinko right in his gut. The Ozuma coughed out a small chunk of blood before Kabuto sent him flying against the wall, his skull crashing against the unforgiving concrete. The impact was hard enough to make Shujinko's back pouch detach itself, landing next to him.

His eyesight was getting darker, he was starting to hear distorted noises and his entire body was going through pain. Even his hair was hurting. Shujinko couldn't believe he was about to lose. All of his training, all of his hard work, all of his determination would be for nothing. Naruto was yelling something at him, but he couldn't understand a single word of what he was saying. Even Lee seemed to be shouting words of encouragement at him... or was it Gai? He couldn't tell them apart, not only because of his blurry vision, but because those two were almost identical. Kabuto was calmly making his way towards him, hands inside his pockets.

'I can't give up now, but I can't fight back either.' Shujinko though as he tried his hardest to come up with a plan. Even something as simple as breathing took effort. 'If I don't move, Kabuto will destroy me. But if I do move, I'll spend whatever energy I have left. Either way, I'm screwed. I need more chakra. I need...'

Shujinko casually glanced at his open back pouch. He recognized four little balls lying on the ground. Shujinko didn't have any smoke bombs left, so they couldn't be that. Those had to be...

'... Soldier pills!'

That was exactly what he needed. One soldier pill would be more than enough to replenish his chakra and energy. His brain 'believed' that he had no more chakra left? Very well, this would give his body all the chakra he needed. Sure, the aftermath wouldn't be pretty, but he was willing to pay the price. There was no way he was going to lose against Kabuto, and there was no way he would make a weakling out of himself. He grabbed one soldier pill with his shaky hand and ate the thing at once.

He nearly chocked. Kami damn, that thing tasted horrible! It was like eating a ball of mud. In other circumstances he would've gagged, but he knew he needed the soldier pill more than anything right now. Shujinko swallowed the pill with difficulty, and fortunately his stomach didn't reject it. Nothing happened the first few seconds, but then he felt a burst of energy replenishing his entire existence. His muscles were no longer aching, his mind was clear and his chakra was 200% ready to be used. It was so much energy he could barely keep his teeth from vibrating! 'Holy crap! These soldier pills are great!'

"I see you still have some energy left. You surprise me a great deal, Shujinko-kun." Kabuto said as his hand was engulfed in chakra once again. "Unfortunately, it's time to wrap this up. Nothing personal, you know."

Having said those words, Kabuto launched himself at Shujinko. Instead of moving right away, Shujinko waited for the last second before disappearing out of the sight of the gray-haired teen. Shujinko himself could barely believe his own speed. His body was just begging him to release energy, like a young hyperactive boy high on sugar. Pumping a little bit of chakra to his feet, Shujinko jumped and landed on top of the statue's fingertips. The rest of the audience watched the brown-haired boy with great interest. Everyone had their eyes on him.

Shujinko wasn't sure if what he was about to do would be enough to beat Kabuto, but he was sure it was his best chance. Win or lose, this moment was going to be epic.

He clapped his hands together and summoned the power of nature. "KARURA TENSEI!"

The effect was instantaneous. Yellow marks appeared behind his eyes and his black pupils grew. Other than Kakashi, Naruto and Sakura, no one had ever seen him activating his Kekkei Genkai. Neji, who saw everything with his Byakugan, was probably the most shocked witness. "Impossible." Neji said. He didn't shout, but his voice was loud enough for everyone to hear him.

"Neji, what's wrong? What happened to Shujinko?" Tenten asked, surprised to see her teammate frowning heavily at the transformed Ozuma.

"His body somehow attracted foreign chakra and fused it with his own, creating a stronger chakra." the Hyuuga genius explained, looking slightly perturbed as he couldn't figure out how Shujinko could do such a thing. His only assumption was that it had to do with the boy's Kekkei Genkai.

"He attracted foreign chakra and fused it with his own?" Tenten repeated in disbelief. "Gai-sensei, how can Shujinko do that?"

Maito Gai also looked very, very impressed. "I do not know. The only people that can do such a thing are..." he trailed off, staring at Kakashi for confirmation. Kakashi managed to give his rival a sly look with his one visible eye, causing Gai to swallow uneasily. After all, it's not every day you get to see a twelve year-old Sage.

"Gai-sensei?" Tenten asked again, but Gai wasn't paying her attention. Normally she would've felt annoyed, but Tenten decided to let it slide this time as it was obvious that her sensei was immersed in the battle, and to be fair, she was as well.

Shujinko had never felt a power like this before. The energy that he got from the soldier pill was now combined with his Hawk Sage Mode, and boy was it a sight to behold. He felt powerful, he felt unstoppable, he felt bold. His soul was screaming at him, begging him to fight with all he had. He took a deep breath to calm himself. These wild thoughts had to come from the soldier pills, which according to many ninjas, turned the consumers into vicious fighters. "Let's finish this."

Pulling out a kunai, the Ozuma jumped out of his spot and launched himself at Kabuto, who grabbed his own twisted kunai. The two weapons clashed against one another with so much strength that they snapped in half, much to the spectators' shock. The two participants threw away their now useless kunais and engaged in a fast and ferocious Taijutsu combat. This time, it was Shujinko the one who had the advantage. He became a blurry image of kicks and punches, and Kabuto was struggling to maintain his defense up.

It was impossible for Kabuto to inflict damage upon Shujinko now. The boy seemed to respond to his every move. His constant attacks made it very difficult for Kabuto to find any openings, and whenever he attempted to take advantage of one, Shujinko would either dodge or attack before he could. Kabuto could see why Orochimaru was interested in the young Ozuma, and he had a feeling Shujinko had yet to reveal the full extent of his bloodline.

He could've beaten him a long time ago. True, the boy was strong, but not strong enough to beat him in an unrestricted fight. Right now, Kabuto was just following Orochimaru's orders and hiding his true strength to the best of his abilities. His orders were to force the Kekkei Genkai out of Shujinko and make him use his abilities against him so Orochimaru could make assumptions and studies out of it. In other words, he was being used as a laboratory rat right now.

Eventually, Kabuto started to feel tired, and Shujinko noticed that his movements were starting to get slower and sloppier. It was time to put an end to the fight. After anticipating a right hook from the gray-haired teen, Shujinko ducked down and, just like Lee and Sasuke once did, kicked Kabuto's jaw with enough strength to send him flying high up in the air.

But the golden-eyed boy wasn't finished yet. Positioning himself below Kabuto, Shujinko weaved the Monkey and Ram handsigns and pointed his mouth directly at his opponent's back. "Doton: Iwadeppo no Jutsu!"

Kabuto yelped in pain as five consecutives stones struck his back while he was still in midair. He could tell he had no broken bones, but his back was definitely going to sport several bruises later on. Kabuto spun around to see the ground, but he saw no trace of Shujinko. The sound of a single clap behind his back made him turn around. In only a few seconds, Shujinko had managed to jump and position himself above Kabuto. In that instant, the gray-haired teen knew he was going to receive a painful blow...

"FUUTON: DAI REPUUSHOO!"

A highly pressured air wave sent Kabuto straight into the ground, making a small crater on the concrete floor. The jutsu was so strong that everyone who was watching the fight had to cover their eyes for a brief moment.

Shujinko gasped for breath as he landed on top of Kabuto with two kunais pointing at his throat and heart respectively. Those two jutsus really drained a good portion of his chakra, especially the wind jutsu. He made sure to pour a lot of chakra into his last technique in order to make stronger than it already was. Had it not been for the soldier pill, Shujinko would've blacked out by, but right now he was just very tired. He deactivated the Karura Tensei out of instinct.

Kabuto's face was badly beaten. He was bleeding profusely out of his nostrils and mouth, he had one black eye and his glasses were demolished. His mouth was twitching, as if he was trying to say something, but all that Shujinko could hear was gibberish. From what he could tell, Kabuto was in a semi-unconscious state, like he was just waking up from a long sleep.

"Talk about overkill." Shikamaru said casually.

Temari started biting her lower lip as she watched her younger sibling. Gaara was shaking again, and his face sported a small, but still psychotic smile. She knew Gaara took an interest in the golden-eyed boy the moment she heard him ask for his name, and these preliminaries were doing nothing but increase his thirst for blood. The Ichibi was starting to get active, and if Gaara couldn't control the demon inside of him, the invasion would most likely be a failure.

Hayate signaled two medics to take Kabuto out of the Arena. After clearing his throat, Hayate raised his voice. "Yakushi Kabuto is unable to continue. Ozuma Shujinko is the winner of the fifth round."

The brown-haired boy was greeted with a round of applause. Naruto was clapping like a madman and taunting Kiba, who ignored the idiotic blond and frowned at Shujinko, not with malice or envy, but with intrigue. Naruto's booming voice was only matched by Lee, who kept complimenting Shujinko's skills as he recognized him as a respectable opponent to measure his power with. The female of Team 7, Sakura, was also clapping and cheering, but not as boisterously as Naruto. Much to her surprise, Tenten found herself clapping as well. While it surprised her, it didn't bother her because she was also impressed with Shujinko's display of abilities.

Slowly but surely, Shujinko walked up the stairs and joined the rest of his friends. He was feeling tired, but most of all, he was immensely proud of himself for defeating Kabuto. Even when the odds were against him, he used his wits and his prowess to overpower a much experienced and developed shinobi. It was finally over. He had won.

He had survived.

* * *

Chapter 22 done and done.

Wow, over 13.500 words long? This has to be a personal record.

Anyways, as you can see, I paid extra attention to Shujinko's fight, for obvious reasons. I skipped a few details here and there in the other stories, but nothing important. Oh, and if I wasn't being clear enough, Kabuto was holding back the entire time. We all know how strong he really is and he would've beaten Shujinko under normal circumstances.

Anyways, it might take me a while to upload the next chapter. Hope you have a wonderful day.

Ja ne!


	23. Chapter 23 (part 2)

**CHAPTER 23: THE PRELIMINARIES (PART 2)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

 _'Flashback'_

 _"Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

 **"Demonic voice"**

* * *

"That... was... awesome!" Naruto shouted as he welcomed his teammate with one of the brightest grins Shujinko had ever seen. "Did you see that, Kakashi-sensei? Shujinko totally demolished that Kabuto guy!"

Kakashi looked at Shujinko with a mix of pride and concern. Combining a soldier pill with a Kekkei Genkai such as the Karura Tensei certainly brought explosive results. He knew soldier pills were drugs that had to be consumed only under dangerous situations or during long-term stealth missions, and once the effects wore off, the aftermath wasn't pretty in the least. Still, he had to congratulate Shujinko for putting up quite a performance. He noticed some of the Genins were looking at Shujinko with interest. Shujinko proved everybody that he was not a competitor one should underestimate. "Well done, Shujinko. You did a great job out there."

"Thank you, Kakashi-sensei." Shujinko replied as he slowly regained his breath. The psychological effects of the soldier pill combined with the adrenaline made it hard for him to act normally. He was tired, but his mind was still telling him to keep on fighting despite the fact that he had already won. "I feel like I just ran a hundred laps around Konoha and part of me wants to run another hundred laps. These soldier pills are crazy."

"Soldier pills do tend to have that sort of effect on someone." Kakashi said as he pulled out his little orange book. "You should go over to the medical area and ask for an antidote. The longer you wait, the worse it gets later on."

"Nah, it's okay. I'll wait until the preliminaries are over before getting some treatment. I want to see the matches too." Shujinko said. Kakashi shrugged his shoulders as if saying 'suit yourself'.

"YOSH! That was a most youthful combat, Shujinko-kun! You truly are a formidable opponent!" Lee praised the Ozuma. He then raised his hand and rewarded him with a thumbs-up. "I look forward to test my skills against you in a hot-blooded match."

Shujinko could barely make half of what Lee said, but appreciated the gesture all the same. "Thanks, Lee."

"Oh, Lee! Words alone cannot describe how proud of you I am!" Gai's voice was so loud that the Genins around him had to cover their ears, and Shujinko was no exception at all. He thought Naruto's pitchy and noisy voice was annoying, but Gai was even worse because, unlike Naruto, he was a GROWN MAN. "I always knew you were a righteous and exemplary young man, but seeing you act in such a wonderful way fills my spirit with joy! The inextinguishable fire of youth burns passionately inside of you!"

"But Gai-sensei, I owe everything to you and your invaluable teachings!" Lee shouted with equal intensity, much to everyone's shock and discomfort. The two spandex-wearing shinobis hugged each other the same way a kid would hug his father, with the exception that both of them were crying rivers.

While Rock Lee and Maito Gai expressed their manly affection for one another, the rest of the participants were wondering if those two had severe mental issues. Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai were used to Gai's nonsense due to the fact that they were once classmates back in their childhood days, and even after all those years they still had trouble dealing with it. The members of the Rookie Ten, however, couldn't possibly begin to understand the amount of weirdness that seemed to radiate from the two Taijutsu experts.

Tenten couldn't stand the embarrassment and covered her beet-red face with her hands. 'I can't believe Gai-sensei and Lee are going at it in a time like this, in front of everybody!' she screamed inside her head. It was bad enough for her and for Neji to see them do that sort of things during their training sessions, but at least they knew no one was watching.

Even the ever-so-stoic Neji was sporting small signs of irritation if his twitching eye was anything to go by.

'Thank Kami Kakashi-sensei isn't like that.' the brown-haired boy thought as he watched the scene with utter disgust. There was nothing wrong with admiring someone, but what he was seeing was just plain ridiculous. If he had to pick, Shujinko preferred Kakashi's indifferent attitude over Gai's eccentric and boisterous personality any day. "Kakashi-sensei, would you mind explaining to me how the heck did you became Gai-sensei's rival?" Shujinko truly couldn't comprehend how two very different personalities could ever forge something as special as a rivalry bond. Then again, Naruto and Sasuke were rivals of sorts, but Shujinko wasn't thinking about that right now.

Kakashi shrugged. "Honestly, your guess is as good as mine."

Gai opened his mouth, most likely to explain how their youthful and dynamic rivalry was born, but Hayate started coughing to get everyone's attention.

"Now, for the (cough cough) sixth match..." Hayate said and the screen started buzzing. After a while, two names appeared.

Sabakuu no Temari vs Tenten

"Tenten, it is your turn now! Your name is up!" Lee shouted excitedly.

"I know, Lee. I know." Tenten replied with irritation. Neji remained as silent as ever, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. His lack of emotion was so notorious that Shujinko couldn't help but think he would make a great statue. Or even better, he would make a great Uchiha impersonator, as long as he dyed his hair black and exchanged his Byakugan for the Sharingan.

Once he was done comparing Neji with the members of the Uchiha clan, Shujinko snapped his head back to reality and decided to give Tenten some encouragement, if only because he really wanted to see her in action. He already knew Lee was a Taijutsu expert, his fight against Sasuke was undeniable proof of that. Neji was part of the Hyuuga clan, therefore making him a Taijutsu specialist as well. But he had no idea what Tenten's abilities were or what field was her specialty. Just because her father was in charge of a weapon store didn't mean she was a weapon expert by default, although it would make sense. Not wanting to lose any more time, Shujinko spoke up. "Good luck, Tenten. Show her what you're made of."

He didn't know why he said that to Tenten. She wasn't his teammate, and he barely knew the girl. But there was something about Tenten that he liked, and that something was her maturity. After spending several years having crazy and obnoxious fangirls for classmates, Shujinko had a hard time finding a girl worth talking to. All of the girls wasted their time fawning over Sasuke, even though he clearly had no desire to know them. Hinata was an exception, but it was difficult to befriend a girl that had severe confidence issues and that stuttered half the time. It was a pity, because at one point Shujinko really wanted to bring Hinata out of her shell, but her social awkwardness made it almost impossible.

But Tenten was different. From what he had seen so far, Shujinko could tell Tenten wasn't like any other girl he had ever met. She was perceptive and confident, two traits that he had never seen before on a girl. Ino sure was confident, but her confidence relied on her looks rather than her actual skills, and Shujinko didn't hold Ino in a very high regard anyway.

For a brief moment, Shujinko thought maybe he shouldn't have said that. Tenten was still looking at Temari, who was making her way down to the Arena with a careless and cocky attitude. Much to his relief, Tenten smirked at him and nodded her head before walking down the stairs. It was only then when Shujinko realized he was holding his breath, although he had no idea why.

"Sabakuu no Temari, Tenten, are you- (cough cough cough) are you ready for your match?"

"I sure am." Temari replied as she grabbed the handle of her fan. "This will only take me a couple of minutes."

The bun-haired kunoichi didn't hesitate to respond. "Bring it on."

"Very well, then... Begin!"

Match number 6: Temari vs Tenten

The moment Hayate gave the signal to start, Tenten jumped back and immediately grabbed her back pouch. Temari merely stood there, smirking ever so slightly. Without wasting any more time, Tenten threw four shurikens, waiting for Temari to do dodge them or deflect them with shurikens of her own. Safe to say, Tenten was shocked when she saw her weapons landing on the ground away from Temari's feet.

"Wh-What? How did I miss that!? Tenten exclaimed. The look on her face was simply priceless.

Shujinko also though it was ridiculous. How could someone miss a target that close? Temari wasn't moving or anything, she was standing on the same spot as before.

In order to make sure she wasn't hallucinating, Tenten pulled out two kunais and threw them at Temari, only this time she made a brief pause between one shot and the other. Just like the first time, Temari was unharmed and the weapons were lying on the ground, but something caught Shujinko's attention. He noticed how well Tenten threw the kunais at the Suna kunoichi, and as far as he could tell, the weapons should've caught her. Temari had to be deflecting them somehow, and Shujinko was willing to bet it had something to do with her giant fan.

"How is this happening? This makes no sense!" Lee declared as he tightened his fists in confusion and irritation.

Shujinko blinked. "What doesn't make sense, Lee?"

"Tenten's accuracy is flawless. I have never seen her miss a target before, especially one that remains stationary. I cannot believe she failed twice in a row."

"Lee is right. Tenten's expertise with weapons is remarkable, and I daresay her efficiency with throwing objects is almost unrivaled." Maito Gai clarified as he rubbed his chin. "That young lady from Sunagakure is deflecting Tenten's weapons using wind."

The self-proclaimed Beautiful Green Beast could be a lot of things: A weirdo, a creep, a lunatic, a freak, and several other names of similar nature. But most of all, he was the most seasoned and knowledgeable Taijutsu expert in all of Konohagakure no Sato, and most likely, all of Hi no Kuni. Because of his training and his battle experience, his eyes were used to high speed movement, which was why he was able to notice Temari grabbing her fan to create a wind current that clashed against Tenten's weapons.

The bun-haired kunoichi also took notice of Temari's fan and realized it had something to do with the way she was blocking her incoming kunais and shurikens. There was no way Temari would bother to carry such a heavy thing just for the looks. No Ninjutsu was involved since Temari wasn't weaving any hand signs and Tenten was pretty sure she wasn't caught inside a Genjutsu of any nature, otherwise she would've noticed it by now. Therefore, the only possible explanation was that steel fan of hers. 'Maybe if I try a different approach...'

Following her instincts, Tenten started running around her opponent until she was facing Temari's blind spot. As she jumped high in the air, Tenten took out a scroll and unsealed an incredible amount of weapons, from simple shurikens to full length katanas, and threw all of them at Temari. 'So she is a weapon expert, after all.' Shujinko thought as he watched how Tenten threw every single one of her weapons with amazing accuracy. The Ozuma believed himself to be a very decent marksman himself, but Tenten was simply in a league of her own.

Sadly, it didn't matter how many weapons were being thrown at Temari, that fan of hers was capable of repelling everything. The worse part? Temari wasn't even trying. If anything, it looked like she was playing with Tenten the same way a predator plays with its meal. "What a drag, that Tenten girl is in a whole lot of trouble." Shikamaru said with a lazy yawn.

"Huh? Why do you say that, Shikamaru?" Naruto asked. "Sure, she's not exactly winning right now, but that doesn't mean she can't pull it off."

"Forget it, troublesome blond. If you can't figure it out now, I won't waste my time explaining it to you."

"Argh! Whatever! You're just trying to sound smart, that's all!"

But Shujinko was beginning to understand Shikamaru's line of thought. It was already established that Tenten was a weapon expert and that Temari was a wind user. While both of them were undoubtedly more than capable kunoichis, it was clear that Temari had the upper hand. Tenten's main strength wasn't going to work on someone with Temari's abilities, and unless she had another plan or a powerful jutsu hidden under her sleeve, things were not going to look good for her. Despite barely knowing her, Shujinko felt a wave of concern inside of him as he watched the match. For a brief moment, the golden-eyed boy wondered if this was how Tenten felt about him when he was fighting against Kabuto.

"Come on, little girl. Can you do anything else besides throw shurikens at me?" Temari's arrogant smirk grew even wider when she saw Tenten clenching her fists. "This is no fun. I'll give you one more chance before I start with my attack. Hit me with your best shot if you really want to make things interesting."

Tenten took a deep breath to clear her head. She never expected Temari to be such a tough opponent. The lack of effectiveness behind her attacks was starting to get to her head, as well as Temari's constant taunting. 'I guess I don't have much of a choice.' she thought with resignation as she grabbed two very special scrolls, scrolls that she used only in the most dangerous of situations. 'My intention was to use this one in the third exam, but it looks like it's now or never.' "Alright, just remember you asked for it!" After opening both scrolls and making a couple of hand signs, Tenten was ready to deliver to Temari her secret technique. "Shoshoryuu!"

POOOOOOOOFFFFFF

Clouds of smoke erupted out of the two scrolls, catching Temari off guard for the first time since the match started. Two dragons made out of the same smoke rose straight into the air, honoring the technique's name. The two dragons, however, transformed into the same scrolls Tenten opened before, and the bun-haired kunoichi was right between them. This time, Tenten unleashed an unbelievable amount of weapons fast enough to make them look like bullets.

Shujinko couldn't believe what he was seeing. The girl he met at a weapons store two months ago was unarguably the most skilled kunoichi in terms of weapon-throwing mastery he had ever seen in his life. For Kami's sake, she was throwing freaking battle axes the same way he would throw pebbles at someone! The only person he believed used to have similar proficiency in terms of accuracy was Haku, and he only used senbon needles, not katanas or kamas.

Temari took a step forward and countered the incoming weapons with the use of her fan. Far from over, Tenten stuck to the roof pumping chakra through her feet and opened both her hands. The weapons she previously threw started levitating almost magically. Shujinko was able to see lights reflections between the weapons and Tenten's hands, and the sound of wire being tensed caught his ears. In that moment, the Ozuma understood what Tenten was planning to do. By directing the tools via ninja wire, Tenten would throw them a second time and hopefully reach an angle where Temari couldn't protect herself.

It sure was a deathly technique... but so was Temari's fan, and so was Temari herself.

The girl from Suna waved her fan in a way that brought her protection in a 360 degrees radius, sending gusts of wind to her every direction. The wind produced by the fan not only blew back the wire-directed weapons, but Tenten as well. Shujinko's mouth twitched in displeasure as he knew what was going to happen next. Tenten lost her last chance to inflict damage on Temari, and now it was her turn to attack.

"That was your best shot? How boring. Now, let's finish this once and for all." and without wasting any more time, Temari swung her metallic fan and pointed at Tenten with it. "Fuuton: Kamaitachi!"

Temari's technique several air currents that collided with one another, creating a tornado that trapped Tenten inside. The tornado was so strong that it lifted Tenten from the ground and started carving her body. Although he couldn't hear her, Shujinko saw Tenten screaming in pain inside the tornado, and anger started to boil up inside of him. The technique only lasted for a minute, but it was powerful enough to leave Tenten unconscious. The tornado faded away and Tenten's limp body fell to the ground...

CLANG

Shujinko's eyes widened in horror as he watched Temari practically impale Tenten with her fan. Tenten's back bent in an almost abnormal way, and a small chunk of blood came out of her mouth.

"Tch, what a weakling." the blond girl from Sunagakure scoffed as she watched the body of Tenten lying on top of her metallic fan. "I guess I was expecting too much." Then, a vicious smile creeped its way to her face.

'No... She can't do it... She can't possibly be thinking of..." Shujinko thought as he paled a bit.

Unfortunately, Temari was feeling particularly cruel today, as Shujinko would quickly realize. In an act of spite, Temari grabbed her fan and threw Tenten a good distance away, where all her weapons she previously threw were lying on the ground. At that point, Shujinko decided to intervene and put a stop to everything. Temari had already won, and throwing Tenten away like a drag doll was as unnecessary as it was savage. Securing a victory was one thing, humiliating your opponent was another matter entirely. Without even thinking about it, Shujinko quickly jumped over the bar and landed just in time to catch Tenten, whom he carefully placed on a safe space free of pointy tools. A few seconds later, Lee was right next to Shujinko, glaring furiously at Temari.

"Heh, nice catch." was the only thing that came out of Temari, as if she had just thrown a ball.

"What is your problem!?" Lee demanded. "Maybe she lost, but that is no way to treat an opponent who gave her everything and fought her best!"

"Shut up, and take that failure of a teammate with you."

"Why you-"

Lee was about to charge against Temari, his anger fueled by how she humiliated Tenten and how she insulted his teammate by calling her the same thing people used to call him: A failure. But just before he could start his attack, Gai made his way down there and placed a hand on top of Lee's shoulder. "That is enough, Lee. Do not let your anger get the better of you." Lee obliged, although reluctantly. Maito Gai then pointed at the team from Suna and gave them a confident smile. "As for you three, do not believe you have seen everything my team can do. Tenten may have lost, but my two other pupils will surely show everyone here what a youthful spirit is capable of!"

With that said, a team of paramedics retrieved Tenten and everybody went back upstairs, with Hayate declaring Temari the winner of the sixth match. Once Shujinko joined his team, Kakashi raised his voice and looked directly at him. "That was a very bold thing to do, Shujinko."

Shujinko looked at his sensei incredulously. Was Kakashi scolding him? "What did I do wrong? She could've gotten really hurt and the match was practically over."

"You're forgetting two very important things. First, this was not your match. Second, Hayate is the designated proctor of these preliminaries, and the only ones here that are allowed to intervene are him and we Jounins should we deem it necessary. You may have earned your place in the third exam, but you're still on time to get disqualified, and what you did back there was a close call. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

The golden-eyed boy was about to retort, but instead he kept his mouth closed. Kakashi wasn't the kind of sensei that would scold his students for anything. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time Kakashi gave him or any of his teammates a lecture about discipline. In the end, he nodded. "I promise it won't happen again, Kakashi-sensei... but I still don't regret what I did." he added.

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders. "Whether to feel guilty or not regarding what you did, I'll leave it to you."

The screen was turned on, and just like the previous times, two names appeared.

 _Nara Shikamaru vs Tsuchi Kin_

"Damn it, damn it, damn it! Everyone here gets to start before me, even that lazy bum! How the heck is that fair!?" Naruto was truly getting impatient now. He was too excited and anxious to participate and show everyone what he was made of. He was the only member of Team 7 that had yet to fight, and patience was not exactly a virtue Naruto was known for.

"What a drag, I have to fight a girl? I should definitely quit right now." Shikamaru said, looking even more tired than usual. Not only was he forced to survive in the wild for five days with Choji and Ino, but now he was forced to take part in a preliminary match? And his opponent was none other than the strange and deadly girl from Otogakure? The whole situation was remarkably troublesome, all because of a Chunin Exam he was never really interested in the first place.

"No, you're not!" Ino countered. "This is your chance to prove Team Asuma is for real! Don't you care what people will think of you if you quit before even trying?"

"Honestly, I could care less what anyone thinks of me." the heir of the Nara clan replied after letting out a lazy yawn. Of course, if he forfeited now, not only Ino would get angry at him, but his mom would also hear about it one way or another. After all he just went through, the last thing he wanted was to get an earful from Yoshino, his scary mother. Both options were troublesome, but he decided fighting the match was the least troublesome thing he could do right now, if only to avoid future headaches.

Match number 7: Shikamaru vs Kin

The moment Shikamaru saw who was the one he was going to fight, he knew he was at a strategic disadvantage. Back in the Forest of Death, Shikamaru was unable to see what her jutsu specialty was all about because Kin never got to reveal it. On the other hand, Kin saw him using his clan jutsu. One of the disadvantages of the Kagemane no Jutsu was that, despite its versatility and maneuverability, it was a very simple technique. One look was all it took for a ninja to understand it. Now Kin knew exactly what she had to do to avoid getting hit by the shadows.

Even so, the infamous Nara technique was virtually his only mean to attack and defend himself. There was no use in hiding it. Shikamaru performed the Rat hand sign and the match started. "Kagemane no Jutsu!"

Kin dodged the shadows that emerged from Shikamaru with little problem as she threw two senbon needles that were stuck to the wall behind the Nara. These senbon needles, however, were very special. They each had a bell attached, and Shikamaru quickly assumed Kin was using the old trick of throwing senbon needles with and without bells in order to confuse him and make him ignore the senbon needles without bells. With that in mind, he decided to put special attention to every single one of the senbon needles she threw in order to avoid getting caught off guard.

But then, the bells attached to the senbon needles she threw rang in unison, for no apparent reason. Shikamaru looked back and noticed a strange light reflection near the bells. He quickly added two and two together and realized Kin was manipulating the bells with wire, and that was when Kin's Genjutsu kicked in.

"What the-"

"Too late. You're already under the influence of my Genjutsu." Kin said with a twisted smile. "It's all over for you."

And just like Temari, Kin attacked without any warning whatsoever. She threw two senbons at Shikamaru, who grunted in pain when the two weapons previously mentioned landed on his right arm, making him lose his already weakened balance. The pain inside Shikamaru's head forced him to drop into one knee.

Shujinko was having a bad time deciphering what on Earth was going on. From what he could see, Shikamaru was partially paralyzed and had trouble moving. Obviously, it had something to do with the bells Kin threw at the beginning of the match, but that was as far as he could understand. He ignored how the abilities of the shinobis from Otogakure worked because this was the first time he observed them.

Kin threw another set of senbon needles at Shikamaru, who used his left arm to avoid sustaining injuries in his torso. It reminded Shujinko of the time when Haku attacked him and Sasuke with the same senbon needles, and he knew exactly how much those things hurt. He had no idea how Shikamaru was going to get out of this one.

"Unless you want to end up looking like a hedgehog, I suggest you give up now."

"Quit playing games, troublesome woman. Get it over with."

"Wow, you're that anxious to die? Oh well, you asked for it." The kunoichi from Oto was about to attack Shikamaru... but she couldn't. Her arm was as stiff as a bo staff. "Wh.-What's going on!? I can't move my arm!" As a matter of fact, she couldn't move a single part of her body. The roles were reversed. Now she was the one who was paralyzed, while Shikamaru stood up and regarded Kin with a triumphant smile.

"Looks like my jutsu was a success after all. Take a good look at yourself and tell me what you see."

Kin was staring at Shikamaru as if she had just received a slap to the face. "What do you mean!? Your shadows never got me, I made sure of that!"

"Oh, really? Don't you find it strange that the wire you're holding still casts a shadow on the ground?" Shikamaru looked down, and of course, Kin did as well. It was only then when Kin took notice of the shadow below the wire she was holding. That same shadow connected the two ninjas, with Shikamaru in control of the situation. "You were so busy trying to kill me that you never realized I managed to catch you with my jutsu."

Shujinko had the habit of blinking whenever he was feeling surprised or perplexed, and this time was no exception. He blinked three times as he pondered about Shikamaru's brilliance. He already knew the heir of the Nara clan was undoubtedly smart, but what surprised him the most was his capacity of turning the tides to his advantage with little to no time needed. Shujinko, on the other hand, usually needed at least a couple of minutes to come up with a strategy that could actually work.

"Very well, you got me. Now what? All I have to do is wait for your little jutsu to end, and you don't have anyone who can attack me while I can't move on my own." Kin said, her arrogance and overconfidence getting the better of her.

"You're such a drag, you know that? This is how I pretend to finish things." Shikamaru replied as he pulled out a shuriken, much to everyone's shock.

But no one was as surprised as Kin. Just like Shikamaru, she was also holding a shuriken. "What do you think you're doing!? If you throw that shuriken, you'll end up killing yourself as well!"

Shikamaru smirked. "That's right. It'll make things interesting."

"No... You're just bluffing. There's no way you're being serious right now." Oh, but Shikamaru was indeed serious. Proof of that? Shikamaru threw his shuriken. "You're insane!" Kin yelled as she threw her own shuriken.

Once the shuriken was close enough, Shikamaru threw his head back and allowed the shuriken to continue its trajectory. Kin smirked as her body imitated what Shikamaru just did... until her skull made contact with the concrete wall that was just inches away from her, making a loud BAM noise. Kin fell to the ground, knocked out and most likely with a massive bruise on the back of her head.

"Tsuchi Kin is un-(cough cough) unable to continue. Nara Shikamaru is the winner of the seventh match." Hayate declared.

Shujinko couldn't help but smirk at the sight of Kin being dragged away by a group of paramedics. 'Who's hearing bells now?' he devilishly thought.

Meanwhile, Naruto snorted and crossed his arms. "Hnh, look at that. Turns out even Shikamaru can fight." Deep inside, he was feeling a little bit jealous by how cool Shikamaru looked during his fight. Not that he would ever admit it, of course.

The Ozuma took the time to think about Shikamaru's match. These preliminary rounds were truly bringing the best out of his friends and classmates. Who would've thought Sakura had grown that much? Who would've thought Shino was that calculating and meticulous? Who would've thought Shikamaru could stop being lazy for a while and actually fight back?

He also thought about how much he had grown ever since he started his life as a Genin. He firmly believed he wasn't the same as before. Kakashi's bell test, his encounter with Zabuza and Haku, the awakening of the Karura Tensei, the start of the Chunin Exams, his fight with Orochimaru and the death of Hadeki truly changed his perspective regarding life. He had learned so much, and there was still so much he had yet to experience.

Shujinko's train of thought was interrupted by a screeching Naruto, who was happily shouting and pointing at the screen, where the names Uzumaki Naruto and Inuzuka Kiba could be seen. "YOSH! This is the moment I've been waiting for! I can finally go out there and kick some butt, believe it!"

"Look, Akamaru! We're going against the dead-last! This is gonna be a piece of cake!" Kiba said out loud, with his dog barking in agreement.

"Be careful out there, Naruto." Shujinko said as he carefully eyed the Inuzuka. "Kiba is cocky, but he has no problem backing up what he says. I've heard the Inuzuka clan has a lot of nasty techniques."

But Naruto merely waved him off, looking utterly unconcerned. "Yeah, yeah, don't worry about me. There's absolutely no way I'm gonna lose to that idiot and his dirty fleabag. He has no idea what he's going up against."

For once in his life, Shujinko decided to put all of his faith on Naruto. During his fight against Kabuto, Naruto never doubted his friend would win, even when things weren't looking pretty. The least Shujinko could do was to trust Naruto's abilities the same way he did. "You're right. Kiba won't know what hit him. Just do me a favor and don't send him to the hospital."

Grinning, the Uzumaki waved him goodbye as he made his way to the stairs. "I'll try, but I'm not making any promises!"

Match number 8: Naruto vs Kiba

"Don't take it too personally Kiba, but I'm gonna blow you away by the end of this match!" Naruto shouted at his opponent.

"Tch, you sure talk a lot, but that's all you got. Me and Akamaru will beat you without even sweating." Kiba retorted as he lifted Akamaru and placed him on the ground.

"Oi, what are you doing? Get Akamaru out of here, he's just gonna get in the way! I'm here to fight you, not your dog."

Hayate shook his head. "Ninkens are also considered as part of a shinobi. Kiba is allowed to fight with him."

Naruto scrunched his nose, but then shrugged his shoulders. "Okay, that's fine by me. It's not like Akamaru can hurt me or anything like that. He's just a little puppy, after all."

"Heh, we'll just see about that." Kiba said with a smirk, thinking he had the match inside a bag. If only he knew he would remember this match for the rest of his life...

"If you two are ready, then... Begin!"

Kiba crouched and performed the Tiger hand sign, releasing his chakra while he was at it. "Gijuu Ninpou: Shykiaku no Jutsu!" Kiba's body went through a number of changes. His nails started to grow, his fangs became more canine, and his pupils turned into slits. It reminded Shujinko of Naruto under the Kyuubi's influence, only without the demonic side of it. With great speed, Kiba launched himself at Naruto and buried his knee inside his gut, sending him flying.

"Man, that was fast. I blinked and it was already over." Kankuro commented when he saw Naruto wasn't getting up after the blow. "That kid is a joke."

"This little goofball is gonna be out for a while." Kiba said as he started walking away. "Proctor, call the match already, will you? We're done here."

Shujinko heard Shikamaru sigh. "Yeah, I thought as much."

"Don't… Don't ever… underestimate me." Kiba's eyes widened as he turned around and saw Naruto slowly standing up. "I'm gonna become Hokage one day… So there's no way… I'm gonna lose here." Once he regained his breath, Naruto gave Kiba an insolent grin. "Heh, you didn't really think I was hurt, did you? Come on, even an old woman hits harder than you!"

"Grrrrh! Big words coming from a wimp like you! Just look at yourself, you can barely even stand up!"

"Heh, guess it'll make things interesting! If I were you, I'd send that stupid puppy of yours to fight me. He has a bigger chance of beating me than you ever will!"

Kiba was seething by now, though it didn't came as a surprise to the members of any of the Rookie Ten. Anyone who grew up having lessons with Kiba knew how much he cared for Akamaru, the same way every Inuzuka did for all of their Ninken. Insult the dog, and you insult the owner. "You're gonna regret that." Kiba said through gritted teeth. He then grabbed a handful of smoke bombs and threw them at Naruto. "Let's see how you like this! Get him, Akamaru!"

Following Kiba's orders, Akamaru entered through the accumulated smoke clouds and proceeded to attack Naruto. Shujinko was unable to see what was going on, but he had the feeling Naruto wasn't having the time of his life. Just as the smoke started to dissipate, Akamaru jumped out of the clouds and charged against Kiba.

"Huh? Akamaru, what are you doing? You're supposed to be- Arrgh!" Shujinko's eyes widened in shock as he saw Akamaru biting Kiba's hand. "Akamaru, what the hell is wrong with you?! Stop biting me!"

"Shurprishe!" 'Akamaru' yelled, still not letting go off Kiba's hand. With a 'poof' sound, 'Akamaru' transformed into Naruto, who ingeniously transformed himself into Kiba's dog in order to catch him off guard. The smoke clouds finally dissipated, and much to everyone's surprise, there was a shadow clone of Naruto holding Akamaru hostage.

"You little twerp! Stop it!"

Naruto eventually opened his mouth and allowed Kiba to take back his hand. The Uzumaki spat on the ground with a look of utter distaste on his face. "What the hell, Kiba! Wash your hands every once in a while!"

"Is that really Naruto?" Ino asked no one in particular. "He's nothing like the clown he used to be back in the Academy. Look, he's even making it difficult for Kiba!"

"Give it up already! You're not half as tough without Akamaru by your side and you know it!" Naruto shouted.

Kiba growled, but instead of allowing his anger to get the better of him, he calmed down and reached for something inside his pocket. "Heh, I admit you're stronger than what I first gave you credit for. But it doesn't matter, because one way or another, this fight will end up with you lying on the ground." After saying those words, he brought two pills out of his pocket and threw one at Akamaru, who instantly swallowed it. "If I were you, I'd let Akamaru go right now."

Moments after swallowing the pill, Akamaru went through a radical transformation. His fans and body grew almost twice their original size, and his fur became slightly red. Naruto's clone was so distracted by Akamaru's transformation that he forgot to have a firm grip on the dog. Akamaru took advantage of that and quickly managed to get away from the clone's grasp, biting him as he did so. Naruto's clone let out a POOF and he was gone.

Kiba smirked as he swallowed a pill of his own. Now he also had longer fans and claws, and his pupils turned into slits. He crouched and allowed Akamaru to get on top of his shoulder. "Let's go, Akamaru! Juujin Bunshin, Gatsuuga!"

Akamaru transformed into a perfect copy of Kiba, and the two of them charged against Naruto with unbelievable speed and ferocity. Naruto couldn't predict where the attacking was coming from, and the more damage he received, the weaker he felt. One particular blow from the pair of human drills was so strong that he was sent crashing against the wall.

It was only then when Shujinko was able to see how hurt Naruto was. His face was covered with animal-like scratched and there was a nasty wound in his chest area. Shujinko had no idea how Naruto could resist such brutal punishment, and how much he could take before the proctor was forced to intervene.

Naruto stood up once again, placing a hand on his chest and breathing heavily. Blood was coming out of his mouth, but even after all the physical suffering he just went through, his cerulean eyes gleamed with determination. Kiba attacked once more, but Naruto was already prepared. Just when he was about to receive a fatal blow, he performed the Henge no Jutsu and a log of wood replaced his body. "Huh? Where did he go?" Kiba asked as he noticed the demolished piece of wood. He turned around and what he saw left him gawking.

Two Kibas were standing right in front of him. To be more precise, two Akamarus transformed into Kibas were standing right in front of him.

'That's it!' Shujinko thought with excitement. 'Naruto used the Kawarimi no Jutsu to evade the attack and then immediately transformed into Kiba, just like Akamaru did! That way, Kiba has no way of knowing who's the real Akamaru. He's forced to attack without knowing who's who. Meanwhile, Naruto is able to go after one of the two. It's brilliant!'

"That's a nice little trick you have there, but you're forgetting one thing…" Without any warning, Kiba jumped forward and punched of his replicas across the face, sending the impostor to the ground. "You might look exactly like Akamaru, but you don't smell like him. I can recognize his scent without problems. That's what you get for messing with-"

POOF

The so-called 'impostor' turned out to be none other than Akamaru, now back to his real body. The Ninken was lying on the ground, seemingly unconscious.

"What?! No way! But I smelled you, you can't be Akamaru!"

Kiba felt a rush of shame, sadness and fury at the same time. Shame, because for the first time in his life, his sense of smell had failed him. Sadness, because of the damage he inflicted upon his loyal companion. And fury, because it was all Naruto's fault. Thanks to the stupid blond, he punched Akamaru mercilessly (something considered to be taboo among the members of the Inuzuka clan) and made an absolute idiot out of himself. He turned around and addressed the real Naruto. "Take this, you little trash!" he shouted as he unleashed all of his negative emotions with a blow to the head. The true impostor was sent to the ground and a cloud of smoke replaced the body…

… Just for a second Akamaru to emerge. Only this one was definitely knocked out.

"Over here, dog-breath!"

Kiba turned around, but he was too stunned over what just happened to move out of the way. Naruto approached him and punched Kiba hard enough to loosen up some of his teeth. The Inuzuka yelped in pain as he stepped back, too confused and enraged to realize that Naruto used the Henge no Jutsu to transform into Akamaru seconds after being punched in order to throw him off.

"Ha! Way to go, Kiba! You took out Akamaru all by yourself!" Naruto mocked his opponent.

"You're gonna pay for that." Kiba hissed. He was so angry that he didn't even notice his sharp nails were going through his skin, making himself bleed.

"Oh yeah? Let's see what you got! I'll end this fight with my own super killer secret technique, one that no one has ever seen before! "

The Kyuubi Jinchuriki ran towards Kiba and tried to land a left hook. Kiba ducked down, and just when he was about to retaliate… Naruto accidentally released a humongous fart directed at Kiba's face.

Under normal circumstances, this would be considered as a suicidal tactic (not to mention, a remarkably moronic one). However, this completely unpredictable and un-shinobi-like maneuver had a special effect on Kiba: His oversensitive sense of smell made the fart a thousand times nastier for him. At first, Kiba didn't react at all, but then he covered his nose with both hands and his face went green. The poor Inuzuka started choking, taking several steps back and fighting the urge to puke.

Sasuke defeated Yoroi by using the Taijutsu he copied from Lee.

Shujinko defeated Kabuto by combining the Karura Tensei with a soldier pill.

Naruto defeated Kiba… by farting on his face.

Were there any questions as to why Naruto was considered the most unpredictable ninja to ever live?

"… Hehehe, that wasn't exactly what I wanted to do." Naruto said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "But anyways, it's time to finish this!"

'Thank Kami that fart wasn't your super killer secret technique.' Shujinko thought as he sweat dropped. He wouldn't put pass Naruto to call a smelly fart a jutsu.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto said as he crossed his fingers. Five other clones appeared. Kiba was simply too disoriented to do anything. One of the clones punched Kiba hard enough to send him flying up in the air. The real Naruto used his clone's back for support and jumped high in the air as well. The rest of the clones started kicking Kiba up one by one.

"U-"

"-ZU-"

"-MA-"

"-KI-"

…

"-NARUTO RENDAN!" the real Naruto shouted as he kicked Kiba down, making his face kiss the ground. The five clones dispelled, leaving an exhausted Naruto. The proctor approached Kiba and crouched down to check how he was. Kiba was still conscious, but the fight was over for him.

"Inuzuka Kiba is unable to continue. Uzumaki Naruto is the winner."

* * *

Hello, and welcome back to another chapter.

As you may have noticed, some of the fights I wrote in this chapter are slightly shorter than their original. I just wanted to upload something as soon as possible. Hopefully I'll finish with the preliminaries in the next chapter.

Glossary:

Shoshoryuu – Rising Twin Dragons

Fuuton: Kamaitachi – Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu

Gijuu Ninpou: Shykiaku no Jutsu - Ninja Art of Beast Mimicry: All-Fours Jutsu

Juujin Bunshin – Beast Human Clone

Gatsuuga - Fang Over Fang

Next we have Neji/Hinata, Lee/Gaara and Choji/Dosu. Hope you have a wonderful day

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Ja ne!


	24. Chapter 24 (part 3)

**CHAPTER 24: THE PRELIMINARIES (PART 3)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto. Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. The OC's on this story are of my property, however.)

"Talking/Jutsu."

'Thinking.'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 _Letter_

" **Demonic voice"**

* * *

Shujinko had never seen Naruto so happy before. As soon as Hayate declared him the winner of the ninth match, the blond Genin made his way back to the second level, shouting and laughing in joy. Sakura and Lee couldn't stop cheering for him, and even though Shujinko was considerably less enthusiastic than both his pink-haired teammate and the spandex-wearing Genin, he couldn't help but feel proud. Naruto, the loud, childish, untalented dead-last of the class had grown so much since the old Academy days. He was still loud and he was still childish, but no one had the right to call him a weakling anymore.

Of course, there was one person who never saw Naruto in such a light. The only one who was just as happy as Naruto was Hinata. She always admired Naruto for being who he was, for refusing to give up and basically for being everything she wanted to be. Confidence, persistence, determination, bravery, Naruto had all of those traits that she so deeply lacked, thus the reason why she admired him so much. Almost the entire population of Konohagakure considered Naruto to be a dangerous, low-life orphan who deserved nothing but hatred and loneliness, but not Hinata. Inside her heart, she knew Naruto would eventually achieve greatness and fulfil his dream of becoming Hokage.

"Yatta! I did it! I did it! Did you see that, Sakura-chan? I completely pulverized Kiba and his stupid puppy!" Naruto said as he approached the rest of the participants.

"Good work, Naruto. I knew you could pull it off." Kakashi said as he closed his erotic novel. He then saw Kurenai, who was giving him an expectant look, and he understood why. Before the start of the Genin Exams, each and every single one of the Jounins who applied for a team received a copy of the profile of all the students.

As it was expected, none of the Jounins were willing to take Naruto as a student, whether because of their aversion towards the Kyuubi Jinchuriki or because of his laughable grades. The look of Kurenai was one that said 'How did the dead-last of the class managed to defeat my student?' Kurenai had nothing against Naruto, but she never expected him to even match Kiba's skills. Kakashi gave her an eye-smile, much to her irritation.

"I thought I told you not to hurt Kiba too much." Shujinko said with a small smirk, his way of saying 'congratulations'.

Naruto chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I know. I think I overdid it a little."

"By the way, what took you so long to create your shadow clones? That's pretty much the first thing you do when you fight someone."

The Uzumaki crossed his arms, hung his head low and 'hummed' as he closed his eyes. "Honestly, I'm not really sure. Ever since the Forest of Death, my chakra has been acting weird. It's like I can't control how much chakra I use when I try to do a jutsu, but I don't know when did this started to happen or even why. I just remember waking up like this."

 _(Flashback)_

 _..."Hey, let me go! Let me go or I swear I'll yank your tongue out of your mouth!" Naruto demanded as he struggled to move. Moving him closer to her while ignoring his threats and insults, the Kusa nin used the tip of her tongue to lift Naruto's jacket. Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of the seal appearing on his stomach._

 _The next thing that happened left Shujinko completely aghast. The Kusa nin lifted her right hand and her fingertips started burning in purple chakra. Then, she buried her palm deep inside the Uzumaki's guts. "Gogyoo Fuuin!"..._

 _(Flashback ends)_

'Was it back then?' Shujinko pondered. During their encounter with Orochimaru and Naruto's outburst, the Snake Sannin did something strange to him. By the sound of it, it looked like some sort of strange seal. He remembered when Hiruzen told him about the seal that the Yondaime Hokage used on Naruto and how it kept the Kyuubi's chakra at bay. Shujinko's Fuuinjutsu knowledge was very limited, but even so, the only explanation he could come up with was that Orochimaru's seal was messing with Naruto's chakra.

"Na... Naruto-kun." Shujinko was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn't notice Hinata walk her way towards Naruto until she was behind the blond Genin. "I-I just wan... wanted to..." Poor Hinata couldn't even finish her sentence; she simply lowered her head and offered Naruto a healing ointment, covering her reddened face while she was at it.

Naruto gave her an inquisitive look, but then he accepted the ointment with a huge grin plastered on his face. He applied some cream on one of the scratches Kiba did to him and, after a few seconds, the scratches on his face were completely gone. "Wow, this healing cream stuff is incredible! Thanks, Hinata!" The heir of the Hyuuga clan stammered something unintelligible and returned to her team.

Shujinko frowned at the sight. How did Naruto's scratches healed so fast? That couldn't be possible.

BUUZZZZZZZ

 _Hyuuga Hinata vs Hyuuga Neji_

The reaction of both Hinata and Neji were completely different. Neji's face hardened slightly, whereas Hinata looked absolutely terrified. She started shaking so hard she looked like a wet puppy that just came out of a cold lake. Both contestants walked down the stairs and faced each other. Even though their facial features were quite similar, their attitudes were nothing alike. Neji remained indifferent to the fact that he was about to fight a member of his clan, but Hinata seemed like she was about to fight Gaara or something.

"I never thought I would be fighting you, Hinata-sama." Neji said with a tiny hint of disdain in his otherwise emotionless voice.

"N-Neither did I, Neji-nii-san." Hinata replied.

"Neji-nii-san?" Sakura repeated in disbelief. "Wait a minute, that guy who's standing in front of Hinata is her brother?"

Lee shook his head. "That is not exactly the case. Neji and Hinata-san are not brothers, but cousins. They are both members of the Hyuuga clan, one of the most ancient families in all of Konohagakure no Sato. They are related the same way the branches of a tree are related to their trunk."

"Mmmmmhhh... Okay, I get that they're related somehow, but what do the branches of a tree have to do with them?" Naruto asked.

Kakashi decided to enlighten his students. "Hinata belongs to Main House of the Hyuuga clan. Meanwhile, Neji belongs to the Branch House. The Main House is like the trunk of a great tree while the Branch House is like the tree's branches. The Hyuuga clan use this metaphor to separate its members, and as you can already imagine, the members of the Main House have a more distinctive and privileged position than those who belong to the Branch House."

"They might not be brother and sister, but they're still cousins." Shujinko remarked as his gaze softened. "I feel pity for them. It must be awful to be forced to fight against your own family."

"Normally, I would agree. However, this fight is certainly very special. Two members of the Hyuuga clan are fighting against each other. One belongs to the Main House while the other belongs to the Branch House." Lee said.

Shujinko gave Lee an incredulous look. "How does that makes this fight very special?"

"I have heard that there has been bad blood between the members of the Main House and the members of the Branch House for generations. According to the rumors, the Branch Family has been neglected and looked down upon by the Main House. In return, the members of the Branch Family are resentful towards those who have mistreated them. That is why I said that this fight will certainly be very special."

The eyes of the brown-haired boy widened. If what Lee said was true, then this wasn't just a preliminary fight. This was... a family feud.

"(Cough cough cough) If you two are ready, then you can begin your match." Hayate said as he waved his arm, letting them know that the fight had just begun.

But neither of them moved. They stood there, looking at each other and waiting... until Neji started to speak. "Hinata-sama, if you truly have some regard for your life, heed my advice and give up while you still can. It is clear that you were never destined to be a shinobi. You are too peaceful and gentle, and you always try to avoid confrontation. It would have been better for you to just stay a Genin for the rest of your life. In fact, you never even wanted to enter the Chunin Exams in the first place, did you? The only reason you are here is because you didn't want your teammates to think of you as a burden."

"No, tha-that's not true! I-I came here because I want-ted to see if I could ch-change."

Neji snorted. "You speak of change as if such a thing truly existed. You were born as the pampered offspring of the Main House, and you shall remain that way until the end of your days. People cannot change. A failure will always be a failure, no matter how much they refuse to believe it."

Shujinko was starting to get pissed. Hinata wasn't someone particularly special in his life, but even so, he would never dare to call a girl with severe confidence issues a 'failure', not just because it wasn't morally correct, but also because it simply wasn't true. Hinata was not a failure and she certainly didn't deserve to be called that way. And that people couldn't change? That was definitely false. Shujinko could hardly recognize Naruto now because of how much he had improved. This Neji guy clearly had no idea who Naruto was, otherwise he wouldn't speak that way about his 'failure' of a cousin.

Yes, Shujinko was angry, but Naruto was even more. If someone knew how much it hurt to be branded as a failure and a loser, that was him. He became even angrier when Neji resumed his speech. "We are judged by our nature, by what we truly are. I know and speak of these things because I see the world exactly the way that it is. You must live with the fact that you are a failure, the same way I have to live with the fact that you were born inside the Main House of the Hyuuga clan while I was born inside the Branch House. You know very well what the outcome of the battle will be, and despite whatever you say, you know you want to run away from me right now."

"Ru-Run away? No! I don't want to-to run away!"

"Do you think I need my Byakugan in order to see through your lies? Your body gestures tell me everything. You put your arms in front of you because you want to create a mental wall to keep me at a distance. You place your closed hand over your mouth to relieve stress and avoid panicking because the idea of fighting against me frightens you. The corners of your eyes are watery, and you can't suppress the incoming tears because you know very well everything that I just said is correct. Shall I continue or have I proven my point?" Neji waited for an answer, and shook his head when he heard none. "Just admit it. You were destined to be weak and fragile. You can still avoid this fight if you-"

"THAT'S IT! I CAN'T STAND THIS GUY!" Naruto shouted as his face was contorted with fury. Neji looked over his shoulder to see who the one that interrupted him was. "Who the hell do you think you are!? You have no right to tell her what she can or can't be! Hinata, are you gonna let this guy get away with what he just said!? Come on, show him what you're made of!"

Hinata lowered her head. For a moment, it seemed like she was about to fall unconscious, but then she gave Neji a look of determination and activated her Byakugan as she positioned herself in a Juuken stance. "I won't run away, not anymore. Defend yourself, Neji-nii-san."

Neji looked at her eyes one more time to see if he could find any traces of regret or second thoughts. He found none. "So be it."

Match number 9: Neji vs Hinata

Both contestants started the match right away. Hinata directed her palm right at Neji's stomach, who used his left hand to move Hinata's palm away and immediately used his other hand to counterattack in a similar fashion. At one point, Hinata attacked her cousin with a series of precise jabs using her two fingers every time she thought she found an opening. Neji merely moved his head left and right in order to evade the incoming strikes. Within seconds, the roles were reversed and Hinata found herself evading Neji's fingers as fast as she could. Shujinko, who had never seen a Hyuuga fight before, found the Juuken to be very strange, yet very entertaining to watch. Every time their palms collided, a small outburst of chakra would escape from the clash, making a piercing sound.

The match went on, and while most would say the fight was even, Shujinko had the suspicion Neji had the advantage. He noticed Neji's moves were faster and smoother than Hinata's, and he also seemed to have more stamina than her. But what was more, Hinata severely lacked viciousness and the will to hurt her enemies due to her caring and peaceful nature, and that could be her downfall. "Sakura-chan, what are those two doing? It looks like they're trying to slap each other as hard as they can." Naruto said as he watched the two Hyuugas thrusting their palms at the same time.

"They're not trying to slap each other, baka. That's the way they fight." Sakura said with an annoyed huff. "Although I don't get how that fighting style of theirs works."

"Let me explain." Lee said as he raised one finger in a lecture manner. "The Juuken is a fighting style that, unlike my Taijutsu, inflicts internal damage to the opponents' organs and chakra network. One direct hit may very well mean the end of the fight."

"But you can still inflict internal damage without using the Juuken." Shujinko pointed out. "I'm no Taijutsu expert, but I'm pretty sure a well-delivered kick or punch can damage the organs of the human body."

Kakashi gave his student a knowing look. "While that's correct, you forget that the human body itself is like an armor that you fortify with time and training. You can break through this armor with enough potency, but the Juuken is meant to search for vulnerable spots and take advantage of them. It doesn't matter how hard you train your body, there's simply no way you can strengthen your organs. The Juuken bypasses this armor and goes straight to the chakra network, which is practically linked to the organs of the human body."

"But the chakra network is invisible to the human eye. How are you supposed to find the weak spots of something you can't see?" Shujinko asked. His eyes widened when he realized the answer. "... The Byakugan."

Gai nodded, indicating that Shujinko was correct. "The Byakugan allows them to see through solid matter. There are very few things that those eyes cannot see."

It was only then when Shujinko realized just how deadly the members of the Hyuuga clan could be. They had eyes that could clearly see through almost everything and they were trained in the art of the Juuken, a Taijutsu that was just as elegant as it was lethal. That, combined with the natural talent that Neji already had made him without a doubt one of the most dangerous candidates to go against. And something was telling Shujinko he had yet to see everything Neji could do.

...

BAAAAAAAM

The two Hyuugas clashed against each other, both with their palms wide open. At first, Shujinko thought the match was going to end up the same way Sakura's match against Ino did, with both participants unable to continue. That idea faded away the second he saw Hinata coughing blood, staining her jacket and the floor. Neji lowered his guard and addressed Hinata with almost palpable distaste. "The match is over, just like it was meant to be."

"But how? I saw Hinata, she and Neji hit each other at the same time! How come Neji is in perfect conditions?" Shujinko asked his sensei, who gestured him to look back. Neji was using his left hand to grab Hinata by her wrist and uncovering her arm with his right hand. Hinata's left arm sported several red spots that were in no way or shape produced by an infection. "What the..."

"The Byakugan is also capable of detecting the chakra points of the human body. The Hyuugas aim for these points when they want to stop or alter the flow of chakra, similar to what happened when Kabuto used his technique on you." Kakashi explained as he carefully observed the genius of the Hyuuga clan. "Neji has blocked the chakra points located in Hinata's arm, meaning that she won't be able to use the Juuken properly." 'But still, for a kid to be this young and talented... I don't think even Sasuke or Shujinko could face him on equal terms. Judging by the internal damage she's already suffering and her virtually useless arm, I'd say Hinata's chances of winning are close to none.'

"That guy's not fooling around. This match is as good as over." Shikamaru said, and for the first time, Shujinko witnessed the heir of the Nara clan saying something without his usually dull and tired voice. He was actually paying attention to the match. "One more blow and she's done for."

Ino gulped uneasily. "What do you mean done for? He's... He's not gonna actually kill her, is he?"

That last sentence sent a shiver down Shujinko's spine. He couldn't picture Hinata dead, and much less by the hand of her very own cousin. Weren't cousins supposed to look out for one another? Shujinko refused to believe Neji's bitterness came just from the fact that he was born in the Branch House of their clan. No, there had to be something else, something a lot more personal that added fuel to the ever-growing fire. But what could Hinata have done to earn Neji's vendetta?

"Come on, Hinata! You almost had him there! Make this jerk eat his words!" Naruto continued to cheer her up.

Kurenai shook her head. 'Hinata can't go on any further. She's at her limit, and another one of Neji's strikes could be fatal. I have to call this match over before she-'

Against all odds, Hinata did continue. Ignoring her arm and the staggering pain inside her chest, she tried to take Neji by surprise with a jab. Of course, Neji never lowered his guard and patiently allowed Hinata to approach him, evading and blocking every single one of her now considerably slower attacks. Since now she couldn't focus her chakra in her left arm, Hinata was forced to combine some of the Taijutsu she learned from the Academy to her Juuken in a feeble attempt to catch Neji off guard. While this might have worked against other competitors, Neji was a tremendously gifted Taijutsu specialist and he would never fall for such a trick. After a while, Neji thought enough was enough and, taking advantage of Hinata's weakened state, unleashed a vicious palm to her face that sent his female cousin back to the ground.

'Hinata...' Shujinko thought as he watched in awe how Hinata straightened up and faced Neji once again. Her cheek was now heavily bruised and her eye was half-closed. But even though she was clearly outmatched, she refused to give up, and now Shujinko was starting to see the shy and socially-awkward heiress of the Hyuuga clan in a whole different light. He had so much more respect for her now, the same way he now respected Naruto because of his unwillingness to lay down and surrender despite the odds.

BAAAAM

With one swift move of his arm, Neji moved away from Hinata's line of attack and buried his palm in her stomach. At first, it seemed like nothing happened, but then Hinata let out a big chunk of blood and fell to the ground with her Byakugan deactivated. The match was over.

"Your attacks were ineffective from the very beginning." Neji casually informed Hinata as he deactivated his Kekkei Genkai. "You are finished. Lie down and accept your fate."

"It is truly regrettable, but after that blow Hinata won't be able to stand up. Her body has received too much damage." Gai said as he did his best to ignore Kurenai's gaze. As the Jounin sensei of his team, he was partially responsible for their actions, and even he was aware of how ruthless Neji was being towards Hinata.

Hayate sighed as he walked over to Hinata's unconscious body. She clearly was unable to keep fighting. Following the instructions given to him by the Hokage, the proctor raised his voice. "Hyuuga Hinata is unable to continue. I hereby declare this match o-"

"NO! Don't stop the fight! Nothing's over yet!" the Uzumaki shouted all the way from the second floor.

"Naruto, Hinata can't go on any longer. She's unconscious and she needs medical attention." Shujinko said as he looked at his teammate. It was clear that Hinata had given her all. Her organs were failing, her breathing was reduced to short gasps and, to top it all up, her chakra was blocked. In other words, there was nothing she could do. There was no way Hinata had the strength to get up after all that punishment.

That day, the universe was determined to prove Shujinko wrong, because slowly but surely, Hinata managed to get up despite everything she went through during her match. With the exception of Naruto and Gaara, no one could believe what they were seeing, not even Neji. Sure, she was clutching her chest and bleeding out of her mouth and nose, with no means to defend herself, but at the end of the day she was standing on her own.

"You foolish girl. What do you think you are doing?" Neji demanded out of her. "If you continue to fight, you will die." Hinata gave him no response other than short, fast breaths. In her current state, even something as simple as giving a proper answer felt like a herculean task. Every time she opened her mouth, it was blood that came out of it, not words. Neji shook his head in disapproval. "You carry a heavy burden having been born in the Main House of the Hyuuga clan. You are weak and vulnerable by nature, and that is something you cannot change despite your efforts. Give up now and maybe you will be able to spend the rest of your miserable life."

"Tha... That's some-something I... I can't do."

"And why not? Why are you so keen on continuing to suffer?"

"... Beca-ause deep down... I-I know that you're suff... suffering a lot m-more than I do... And it's all because... o-of the Main House and the Br-Branch House of our clan."

And that was the last straw for Neji. Those simple words made him furious and, before anyone knew what was going on, Neji went on a rampage. Had it not been for the three Jounins' intervention, Neji would've struck Hinata for good. Before Neji could even touch her, Asuma appeared in front of him in a defensive stance to prevent the blow from landing. Kakashi and Kurenai were holding Neji's hands with a tight grip. And of course, Maito Gai was behind his student with his arm around his neck. "Neji, I order you to get a hold of yourself." Gai said in a strangely serious voice. "You promised me your feelings towards the Main House wouldn't get in the way."

"Why are you and the other Jounins interfering with our battle?" Neji said as he gritted his teeth. "I was unaware that the members of the Main Branch received special treatment."

Shujinko gawked at the scene. 'Special treatment?' You were about to kill your cousin, of course they're going to interfere!'

"Aaaaaaagghh." Hinata's heart couldn't take it anymore. Her weak legs faltered and her body fell to the ground. Kurenai was immediately by her side, doing whatever she could to prevent her situation from worsening. The other Jounins released Neji, still eyeing him carefully in case he attempted to do something suspicious. To their relief, Neji seemed to realize that he wouldn't be able to lay a finger on Hinata while they were around.

"This is bad. She's suffering a cardiac arrest." Kurenai said as she used her Medical Ninjutsu to search for internal injuries. "What are you waiting for? Get a medic team right now!"

"Coming, ma'am!" said one of the paramedics as they carefully placed Hinata on a stretcher.

"Hang in there, Hinata! I'm coming!" Naruto shouted as he jumped over the handrail, with Sakura and Lee following behind. Shujinko was tempted to check on Hinata as well, but Kakashi's previous warning advised him otherwise. He had already interfered more than enough and he didn't want to risk losing his right to participate in the third part of the Chunin Exams.

One of the medics raised his voice. "This is serious. If she doesn't receive the appropriate treatment within minutes, she'll most likely die from heart failure. Come on, let's get moving!"

Once Hinata left the scene, Neji called for Naruto's attention. "You there, I have two pieces of advice for you. First, if you truly think of yourself as a shinobi, stop that childish cheering of yours. Second, a failure will always be a failure, regardless of what you think. Hinata-sama thought she could change, and look where that got her."

Naruto growled intensely at him. "You think I'm gonna let you get away with what you did to Hinata!? Maybe you'll change your mind once I beat the crap out of you!"

Neji gave him a mocking smirk in response, and that was all Naruto needed to start a fight. He charged against Neji, fully intending to leave him in a worse state than Hinata's. He was stopped by Lee, who placed himself between the two Genins before anything could happen. "What the hell are you doing, Lee? Let me have a go at him!"

"Naruto-kun, believe me when I say I understand your feelings, but the rules say all matches must be strictly official. The loser beating the gifted genius through sheer willpower and hard work would make a much more exciting match, whether it is me or you the one who has to fight Neji."

At first, Naruto looked as if he was going to ignore Lee and push him aside, but in the end he desisted and begrudgingly backed down with his hands inside his pockets. "Whatever you say, Bushy Brows." But before walking up the stairs, Naruto approached a small pool of blood and touched some of it with his fingers. He then looked at Neji and tightened his fist in front of him. "Hinata, I give you my word. I swear I'm going to win no matter what."

The golden-eyed boy had no idea how Naruto was going to keep his oath to Hinata. Neji was simply in a league of his own. Although the fact that someone just a year older than him was that strong bothered him a great deal, Shujinko could recognize a tough opponent when he saw one, and Neji was much more than just a tough opponent. In fact, he was the strongest Genin of their generation according to Lee, and Shujinko was starting to believe it as well.

Eventually, people returned to the second floor and waited for the next match to begin. There were only four participants that had yet to fight: Choji, Lee, Gaara and Dosu. The ones Shujinko really wanted to see were Gaara and Lee. He already had a general idea regarding Lee's abilities, but Gaara was a complete mystery. He supposed he was also interested to know more about Dosu, the guy from Otogakure that had something to do with Orochimaru. 'I wouldn't want to be in Choji's shoes right now.

He's going to fight one of those three dudes and he doesn't even get to pick who.'

Meanwhile, Kankuro made his way to the other side of the second floor and started acting friendly towards Naruto, asking him questions regarding Neji's skills and trying to get on his good side. Shujinko remembered that guy. He was the one who bullied both Konohamaru and Nanami when the first one accidentally bumped into him.

Needless to say, Shujinko didn't like that guy not one bit.

"You know, you seem like a nice kid." Kankuro said to Naruto. "I get the feeling we could be friends, you know."

"Yeah? Well, don't take it personally, but I don't wanna be friends with you at all." was Naruto's response. Shujinko smirked in delight.

"Alright, Lee. You better prepare yourself, because I predict the next match will be yours!" Maito Gai announced as he gave his precious student a grin and a thumbs-up.

"With all due respect, I hope that is not the case, Gai-sensei." Lee said as he closed his eyes and looked away. "I have been waiting for so long, I may very well go last."

'What has gotten into him?' Shujinko thought as he narrowed his eyes. 'He hasn't stop talking about how much he wants to fight, and now all of a sudden he wants to go last?'

BUUUUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

 _Rock Lee vs Sabakuu no Gaara_

"I knew it! It worked like a charm!" Lee proclaimed as he repeatedly pumped his fists. "I had the feeling I was going to be last if I said I wanted to be next, so I applied the basic principles of inverse psychology and said I wanted to be the last one to fight!"

"Ha! Good one, Lee! I expected nothing less from my student!"

Shujinko face-palmed. Of course those two nutcases would come up with something like that.

"Now, a piece of advice before you go out there, Lee. You see that gourd that Gaara is wearing? Be careful, I know there is something very strange about it and it could be dangerous."

"Understood, sir! I must be aware of the gourd!" Lee repeated as he took out a small notebook and started scribbling down the advice.

"Do not write it down, Lee! You must not rely on your notebook when looking for advice during the middle of a fight! Your opponent could take advantage of that and strike when you are not looking."

Ironically enough, Lee also wrote that down. "Of course! A very clever advice, indeed!"

After that distasteful piece of theatre, Lee and Gaara met down in the Arena. The boy from Sunagakure remained silent with his arms crossed and a bored look on his face. Lee was the complete opposite of Gaara, already extending his palm in a challenging way. Hayate coughed a little before addressing the two Genins. "Alright, the tenth match is about to (cough cough) to begin. Sabakuu no Gaara, Rock Lee, are you two ready?"

"Hai, let us begin this battle!" Lee proclaimed as his eyes were suddenly burning with passion. As expected, Gaara said nothing, and the proctor took that as his consent.

"Very well, then... Begin!"

Match number 10: Gaara vs Lee

Lee wasted no time and immediately charged against Gaara. "Konoha Senpuu!" he shouted as he delivered a powerful jumping kick aimed at Gaara's face. At first, Shujinko thought Gaara didn't react in time because Lee was too fast for him, but he was quickly proven wrong as Lee's attack was ineffective. Somehow, Gaara managed to defend himself with the use of some sand he was carrying inside his gourd. The sand covered his right side and absorbed the impact, leaving Gaara unscratched and unfazed. After blocking Lee's kick, more sand came out of the gourd and tried to catch the spandex-wearing shinobi, who jumped back just in time before the sand could touch him.

"Is... Is that sand?" Sakura asked with an awestruck look on her face. Shujinko was every bit as impressed, but did a slightly better job at hiding his intrigue.

"That's quite an unusual jutsu." Kakashi said as he narrowed his only visible eye.

That was everything the Ozuma needed to hear. That statement came out of the mouth of the infamous Hatake Kakashi, the man who had copied more than a thousand jutsus throughout his life. Still, Shujinko thought it was oddly appropriate for the Suna boy to have such ability. His name was Sabakuu no Gaara, after all.

After a minute of standing still, Lee charged a second time and tried to see how fast and endurable Gaara's protection was. Using all of his speed, he attempted to punch and kick Gaara from every possible angle he could find, but the sand reacted to his every move. Lee even tried to cut through Gaara's defense using his kunai, but as soon as he finished slashing a layer of sand, it was instantly replaced with more of it. But the most shocking thing of all was that Gaara wasn't even trying to protect himself. He didn't need to move in order to control the sand, it was as if the sand had a mind of its own.

"Wow, he's using the sand to protect himself!" Naruto exclaimed. "Now I get it. He doesn't needs to move because he can attack and defend himself using his sand."

Kankuro chuckled. "Not quite. Gaara's sand is almost like a living thing, it comes to Gaara's aid as if it had free will. That's the reason why Gaara has never been hurt in his life. That's the reason why no one can touch him."

'So Gaara's sand is similar to a living shield.' Shujinko thought as he grimaced. 'If Lee doesn't come up with something to get through the sand, he'll end up exhausted and vulnerable to Gaara's attacks. And by the looks of it, Gaara is far from getting tired.'

"Is that all you can do?" Gaara spoke all of a sudden. His voice was blank and emotionless, just like his face. "I hope you haven't finished entertaining me. We haven't had enough fight. We haven't had enough… blood."

Shujinko blinked incredulously. 'We? Who is he talking about?'

The sand that was spread all over the floor accumulated itself and grabbed Lee's ankle, throwing him at the nearest wall. Shujinko winced when Lee's back made a loud THUD noise, but he immediately stood up and tried to reach Gaara. Lee became a green tornado of fists; doing everything he could to come closer to his opponent.

Unfortunately, the only thing that his hands touched was sand, sand and more sand. Shujinko couldn't help himself and asked what everyone was thinking. "Why is Lee only using Taijutsu? He's obviously great at it, but if he can't touch him directly, then he should change his strategy. Is Lee any good at Genjutsu? It's not a physical attack, so the sand may be unable to protect Gaara."

To his surprise, Maito Gai let out a small laugh. "Yes, that could be useful... If Lee had any skills in Genjutsu or Ninjutsu, that is. My student has absolutely no skills in those areas whatsoever. He is incapable of using anything but Taijutsu."

The Ozuma was lost for words. "Wait, are you serious right now? The only thing Lee can rely on is his Taijutsu because he can't use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu? Like... at all?"

"That is quite correct, Shujinko-kun. If you could only imagine how hopeless he was before I found him... Oh, he sure was pitiable."

Sakura heard every word Gai said. While the news of Lee being only capable of using Taijutsu sure was shocking, there was another thing that made her suspicious. For some reason, the Jounin didn't seem to be worried in the slightest. His speech was calm and confident, and despite seeing his student struggling against a much more advantaged opponent, he was smiling like he didn't have a thing to worry about. For someone who clearly had a deep connection with him, Gai certainly didn't look concerned at all for Lee's wellbeing.

At one point, Lee jumped back to avoid getting caught by Gaara's sand waves and accidentally stepped on some sand, making him loose his footing. Everything got worse when the sand became a huge hand that tried to crush him, and just when he was about to get squashed, Lee regained his senses and used his hands to jump away from Gaara, landing on top of the statue's fingertips just like Shujinko did when he fought Kabuto.

"It is extremely uncommon to find a ninja who can do neither Ninjutsu nor Genjutsu." Maito Gai started to say. "As I stated before, Lee can only depend on his Taijutsu to get by. Some may consider this a complete disadvantage... but that is precisely what makes him a winner." After saying those words, Gai redirected his gaze to his student and gave him a thumbs-up. "Listen up, Lee! Take them off!"

"Take them off? But Gai-sensei, you said I should do it only as a last resort, when the lives of those close to me were in danger!" Lee shouted back all the way from the giant statue.

"True, but I will allow it only this time as an exception!"

Lee was befuddled for a couple of seconds, then a huge grin took over his face. "Really? Oh, thank you very much, Gai-sensei!" He then sat on top of the statue's fingertips and took off his orange leg warmers, revealing a set of weights around his ankles. Why would someone carry weights around his ankles during a fight was far, far beyond Shujinko. That was literally handicapping oneself. "Aaaahh, much better! Now I can move freely!" Lee said with delight as he put his leg warmers back on and dropped the weights he was previously carrying.

'Alright, so Lee will be able to move a little faster now.' Shujinko thought as he watched the weights go down. 'Still, it won't do him much good if Gaara's sand ca-'

CRASSSSHHHHHHH

The impact of the weights hitting the ground was so powerful that the Arena literally trembled for a while. Shujinko had to grab the hand bar in front of him to regain his balance, totally not expecting the weights to be that ridiculously heavy. 'Wh-What the actual f... How can Lee move with those things!? They must weight like a freaking ton each! THEY JUST SHATTERED THE GROUND AND LEFT CRACKS EVERYWHERE, FOR KAMI'S SAKE!'

"Do it, Lee! Show him what you are made of!" Gai shouted.

"Hai!"

Before anyone could make sense of what was going on, Lee disappeared in a blur of movement and punched Gaara from behind. Although the sand managed to protect Gaara from the blow, Lee's fist actually passed through the defense and almost made contact with his skull. For the first time in many, many years, Gaara's eyes widened in astonishment, unable to comprehend how Lee managed to get so close to his humanity. Another blur and Lee was already kicking Gaara's right flank. The only thing the Ichibi Jinchuriki was able to see was a glimpse of green surrounding him and mercilessly pounding his sand. During one attempt, the spandex-wearing Genin actually passed through the sand and missed Gaara's face by a few inches.

"That was so close!" Sakura exclaimed with a bright smile.

"I don't believe it..." Shujinko whispered to himself. Lee just gave a whole new definition of the word fast. He was considerably faster than the average Genin and Chunin with his weights on, but this... this was just insane. Shujinko thought about it, and came to the conclusion that the only one who could defeat Rock Lee in terms of speed was Maito Gai himself, and maybe Kakashi and the Hokage.

Shujinko was so distracted by Lee's explosive Taijutsu that he almost missed Gai's explanation. "I was aware that Lee had no ability when it came to Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, so we decided to skip all of that and spend all of our time and energy in developing his Taijutsu. Over time, his disadvantage became a blessing. Lee requires nothing else to win now, because he just transformed into the world's greatest Taijutsu specialist."

BOOOOM

The only thing Shujinko saw was Gaara landing on his back with a small cut on his left cheek. The kick had been so fast that it came close to being imperceptible. At last, Gaara's sand defense was evaded and the boy from Sunagakure knew what it was like to feel unprotected against a fearless adversary. It was painful, but most of all, it was extremely confusing. It took Gaara a while to realize he had just been hit, and even then he couldn't believe what just happened. The look on his siblings' faces was simply priceless, almost comical.

"Man, Bushy Brows' scary! And I thought he was quick on his feet before!" Naruto said, being every bit as stunned as everybody present.

"Go, Lee! Let the power of youth explode inside of you!" Gai cheered as he made an overenthusiastic pose.

Inspired by the words of his sensei, Lee disappeared out of sight and reappeared close to Gaara's right side. "Over here!" he shouted as he feigned a punch. As expected, the sand tried to protect Gaara, but Lee had already teletransported to Gaara's left, and this time, he really went for a direct hit. The result? Gaara was sent flying to the ground, once again, dumbfounded and hurt.

'This is exactly like when he fought Sasuke. It doesn't matter if Gaara's sand defense is impenetrable because he can't use it fast enough.' Shujinko realized as his lips curled into a smirk. 'And without his sand to protect him, Gaara is defenseless against Lee's Taijutsu.'

The Ichibi Jinchuriki slowly stood up, his head hanging low. The golden-eyed boy narrowed his eyes as he noticed something strange. For some reason, there were small bits of sand falling from Gaara's face. He leaned closer to get a better look... and what he saw made him feel sick.

Gaara's face was cracked like a broken window. His skin had been replaced by solid sand that continued to fall like drops of water. While this happened, Gaara's entire body seemed to absorb a layer of sand that came out of the gourd he was carrying. Slowly but surely, Gaara's outer covering was replaced with more sand that acquired his natural skin tone, revealing a fully restored face. The cut and the bruise that Lee gave him were completely gone.

"Look at his face." Shujinko said as he struggled to maintain a steady voice. The sight of Gaara's face falling down was truly revolting. "His wounds aren't there anymore. What did he do?"

"That's Gaara's sand armor." Kankuro replied, and judging by his facial expression, Shujinko could tell he was not happy at all. "Normally, Gaara has no need to protect himself. But if something manages to get past his shield, he can still use his sand as a suit of armor. It's his last line of defense."

"Wait a minute, that's not fair!" Naruto protested. "I mean, that sand shield thing was already bad enough, and now he has a sand armor? It's like he has no weak spots whatsoever!"

What the Uzumaki didn't know was that Gaara's sand armor was actually a weak spot itself. Using the sand as an armor required an enormous amount of chakra, which in this case, was provided by the Ichibi. If that wasn't bad enough, the sand armor wasn't as resilient or as unpierceable as the sand shield, meaning that Lee's incoming attacks would eventually demolish Gaara's armor. Only Kankuro, Temari, Baki and Gaara himself were aware of this.

As soon as Lee started unwrapping his bandages, Shujinko knew something big was going to happen. When Lee fought Sasuke before the start of the first exam, he had done the same thing, but was interrupted by Gai and his... talking turtle companion. When he was done, he approached Gaara and started to run laps around him at incredible speed, to the point where his body became a green blur. And all of a sudden, Lee delivered a kick that sent Gaara flying straight up.

But the spandex-wearing Genin wasn't quite finished yet. Defying the basic laws of gravity, Lee continued to kick Gaara higher and higher while the sand tried to keep up with them. At one point, Gai clapped his hands together and closed his eyes, as if praying for something to happen. Just as they were about to reach the roof, Lee waved his arms and the bandages started to wrap up Gaara, leaving him unable to move. Seconds before gravity started to kick in, Lee wrapped his arms around the red-haired boy and began to furiously rotate his body as the two competitors went straight into the ground. "Omote Renge!"

CRAAAASHHHH

The results were devastating. Lee's technique left a considerably-sized crater on the concrete floor upon impact, leaving the spectators even more astonished than what they already were before, which was saying something. Shujinko, who had never seen a Taijutsu combat of that caliber before, was simply speechless. Gai's student had to be, without any room for doubt, the fastest and strongest shinobi of his age in all of Konohagakure no Sato.

Shujinko had a good reason to believe that. He became a ninja despite being unable to perform Ninjutsu or Genjutsu of any kind. His Taijutsu skills alone were outstanding, and he became nearly impossible to follow when he took off his weights. And that final attack of his... just thinking about it was enough to send shivers down his spine. 'I can't really picture Lee loosing against Neji if he didn't used his weights. I know Neji is a prodigy and all, but Lee's Taijutsu is out of this world... I would lose to him, that's for sure.' he admitted to himself, not without feeling a tad bit jealous. At least he had the comfort of knowing that Sasuke wouldn't be able to defeat Lee as well.

What was even more impressive was the fact that Gaara had more cracks on his body than the rest of the floor. It was almost like staring at a fragmented porcelain figure that was going to break itself at any moment. There was nothing the sand armor could have done to withstand the power of the Omote Renge. It was clear that Lee, while definitely in a better shape than Gaara, was visibly exhausted and weakened. He was breathing heavily and seemed to have some trouble standing on his feet, but the smile on his face made it all worth it.

"Lee, you did it! You're amazing!" the Haruno shouted with enthusiasm. It was hard to believe that the girl who once saw Lee as a repulsive weirdo was now clapping and cheering for him.

"Way to go, Lee! That is what I am talking about! I told you the power of youth would always prevail in the end!"

Hayate walked towards the Ichibi Jinchuriki, ready to declare the winner of the match and call out the last two participants. He opened his mouth... but something made him stop. Gaara's body started to crumble away, leaving nothing but an empty shell of sand behind. Realizing that the match had yet to finish, Hayate said nothing and backed away as quickly as he could.

"What the..." Shujinko couldn't finish his sentence.

"He... He replaced himself?" Gai stuttered. "But how? When did he do that?"

"It was when you closed your eyes to pray." Kakashi answered. His usually bored voice tone was gone. "At that moment, Lee closed his eyes as well because of the pain. Gaara saw it, and took advantage of that. That's when he did it."

Lee couldn't believe the situation he was in. He risked everything by attacking Gaara with the Omote Renge, only to realize that his opponent managed to get away safely while he ended up against a corner with no way out. He gasped when he heard someone laughing quietly behind his back. Lee turned around, just to see Gaara coming out of a pile of sand with an evil look on his face. Baki gulped as he knew what was happening to his student, and feared for what was going to happen next.

The Ichibi had finally awoken, and just like always, it was thirsty for blood.

Lee's blood.

* * *

That's it for chapter 24.

I would like to apologize if my latest chapters haven't been all that creative. That's what happens when you have to stick to the anime, you get little creative space. Anyways, the next chapter will be the end of the second exam and finally, finally I'll be able to write something more original. I already have quite a few ideas ready.

Glossary:

Juuken - Gentle Fist

Omote Renge – Primary Lotus

Hope you all have a wonderful day. Favorite, Follow and Review please.

Ja ne!


	25. Chapter 25 (part 4)

**CHAPTER 25: THE PRELIMINARIES (PART 5)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

From the very first time Shujinko laid his eyes upon Gaara, he knew that the boy had severe issues. His emotionless voice, his death threats to his siblings, his lack of basic human feelings, the disturbing look in his eyes… those were all dead giveaways of how mentally unstable Gaara was. It was impossible to come close to him without feeling like your life could end in a matter of seconds.

But after seeing the look on Gaara's shattered face when he came out of that pile of sand, Shujinko realized something.

Gaara didn't just have issues… He was a psychopath. Nothing less, and nothing more.

The one thing that frightened Shujinko the most was the fact that he and Gaara had the same age. The boy from Sunagakure was like a demon, a twelve year-old demon with an unexplainable thirst for blood. True, Zabuza might have been a demon and a terrible human being as well, but at least he attempted to redeem himself during his last moments and even managed to die next to Haku, the person he cared for the most.

Without wasting any time, Gaara performed the Tiger hand seal and the sand around him started to vibrate before charging against Lee, who could only use his arms to cover his face. Lee was thrown back several times until Gaara commanded the sand to return, his twisted smile never leaving its place.

Just when he thought Gaara had stopped, Lee found himself in front of a giant wave of sand that crashed against him. The spandex-wearing Genin was swallowed by Gaara's attack, and moments before he started to suffocate, he was spat out of the wave and his back met the concrete wall, nearly breaking his spinal column.

"What on Earth is Lee doing?" Sakura asked as she watched Lee getting mauled to death by the boy from Sunagakure. "Why isn't he dodging Gaara's attacks? Just a few seconds ago, he was fast enough to get through his defenses!"

"For a very simple reason: He cannot dodge the sand in his current state." Gai replied, sounding less than pleased by Lee's situation.

"The Omote Renge is labeled as a forbidden technique, and rightfully so." Kakashi explained. "Unlike what you're used to see, this isn't Ninjutsu or Genjutsu. It's Taijutsu, meaning that Lee's body is the one that has to suffer the consequences of using such a dangerous jutsu. The Omote Renge is what's known as a double-edged sword, because both the victim and the user receive critical damage. Right now, Lee is experiencing so much pain that he can barely move at all. Isn't that right, Gai?"

Despite having all of his attention on the fight, Shujinko was able to pick up a gentle hint of disdain in his sensei's words, and it made him wonder what was going on between those two. After all, Kakashi wasn't really the type of person to openly show feelings like resentment or disapproval.

Kakashi's explanation was on point. Lee was breathing heavily and struggling to get up, as if he has done running a marathon. Although he was far from being an expert on the matter, Shujinko was pretty sure Lee was one of the best Taijutsu users in all of Konoha, maybe second to Neji. His stamina and overall body strength was unlike anything he had ever seen. It made him wonder just how exhausting it was to use the Omote Renge.

"Man, no Ninjutsu or Genjutsu? There's no way that guy can win." Choji said, feeling bad for Lee and at the same time thanking Kami he didn't have to fight Gaara.

Even Shikamaru was paying attention, which was definitely not a common occurrence considering he pretty much spent all of his time in the Academy sleeping and skipping class. "Win? That guy will be lucky to survive."

Shujinko was starting to think among the same line as Shikamaru. Gaara kept torturing Lee and there was nothing the poor boy could do other than run away from the sand. But what truly unnerved Shujinko was how the Ichibi Jinchuriki seemed to enjoy tormenting Lee, smiling as he sent waves of sand at him. How could someone be so thrilled by the idea of causing pain? How could Gaara's mind be so twisted and distorted?

"Lee should give up while he still can." Kankuro said out loud. "Gaara is just going to toy with him until he begs for mercy."

"In that case, Gaara is in for a long match because that will never happen. Lee has no idea how to give up." Gai said immediately, not taking his eyes from Lee.

The fight went on, and Shujinko had to fight the urge to close his eyes and cover his ears. The gap between those two was simply too big, making it a less than fair match. In fact, it never was a fair match to begin with. But what truly touched Shujinko was Lee's refusal to give up. Lee was just like Naruto in that way. Despite being at a complete disadvantage, the spandex-wearing Genin refused to give up and kept forging on even when he had no way to win. It was the kind of strength that he admired… and even envied at some point.

During a brief moment, Lee looked at his sensei, and Shujinko could've sworn there was small tear running down from his eye. Gai merely smiled and replied with a slight nod.

"He can't go on!" Sakura shouted as she leaned over the handrail. "Proctor, please stop the fight before he gets killed!"

Her pleas fell on deaf ears. Lee was still standing and he had yet to express any wishes of giving up, and Hayate was forbidden from putting an end to a fight that still wasn't finished. As for Gaara, he raised his hand and shot several sand blasts with the intention to take out Lee for good… but they never made contact. In an unexpected turn of events, Lee disappeared out of the way of the sand blasts, moving like he used to after removing his weights.

"What just happened? How can Lee still move that fast?" Shujinko asked.

Gai's smile widened. "Let's just say Lee has decided to play his final card. After all, the lotus of the leaf blooms twice."

Shujinko had no idea what lotus was Gai talking about and what it had to do with Lee miraculously recovering his speed. Sakura, however, recalled hearing that phrase. "I've heard that before… Yeah, Lee told me the same thing during the second exam!"

"No, Gai. Please, tell me you didn't…" Kakashi started to say.

"Oh, but I did it, Kakashi."

"Are you telling me that boy, that Genin is able to unlock the Eight Inner Gates and unleash the Ura Renge?"

"Indeed."

The Ozuma got slightly scared when he saw the look on his sensei's face. Kakashi was glaring intensely at Gai with his only visible eye, his laziness all but forgotten. "That's the most… I have no words to… (Sigh) Very well, how many doors can he open?"

"Lee can open up to five gates." Gai replied.

"Hang on a second! What are you talking about? What are these so called gates? And the Ura Renge?" Sakura demanded to know.

Kakashi placed his hand on his headband and uncovered his Sharingan. "As you already know, there are several tenketsu located inside the chakra pathway system. However, certain tenketsu stand out from the rest, and they are known as 'gates'. Kaimon, Kyumon, Seimon, Shomon, Tomon, Keimon, Kyomon and Shimon. These are known as the Hachimon, the Eight Inner Gates. Their job is to limit the overall flow of chakra within a person's body. However, certain techniques force these gates to open, which results in a massive chakra outburst that allow the user to surpass its physical limitations."

"But what about the Ura Renge?" Shujinko asked. "What does it has to do with these so called gates?"

This time, Gai answered his question. "The Omote Renge in unleashed when the Kaimon, the Gate of Opening, is opened. This causes the brain to remove the restrains of the human body, allowing the user to use its muscles to their fullest. You already saw the results. Lee just opened the Kyumon, the Gate of Rest. This gate re-energizes the body and allows the user to go back to its previous peak condition, which explains Lee's sudden recovery. And then, we have the Seimon, the Gate of Life. This is where the Ura Renge takes place."

"Wait a minute, you just said the Omote Renge was a double-edged sword because of how much damage was done to both the target and the user. What's going to happen if Lee keeps pushing himself like that?"

"Exactly. Whoever opens all eight gates will obtain power far beyond that of the Hokage's. But ultimate power comes with an ultimate price to pay, and the price to pay… is the user's imminent death." Ignoring the awestruck look on his students' faces, he confronted Gai. "I have no idea what that boy means to you, but at this point you should know very well we must never allow ourselves to become emotionally attached to our students. You've gone way too far, Gai."

But the spandex-wearing Jounin replied even harder. "You have no right to talk! You don't know anything about Lee, nothing at all!" Although he didn't show it, Kakashi was taken by surprise. Gai almost never used that kind of tone on people. "In this world, he who is born without abilities is branded a failure. Lee has a goal to achieve, and he will achieve it even if he has to risk his life. I encourage him to follow his dream not for his own good, but because his dreams are worthy of something."

For the first time in many years, Kakashi was lost for words. He knew exactly what Gai felt for the boy, for he himself witnessed the struggle and the difficulties Gai had to endure during his youth. Maybe Kakashi refused to become emotionally attached with his students or anyone for that matter, but he was still a human being with feelings and emotions. In the end, he sighed and decided to put the rest of his attention to the match.

In that moment, Lee crossed his arms in front of his face. At first, it seemed like he was doing nothing, but then a column of energy appeared out of Lee, and his skin tone began to turn red. "Gai-sensei, the conditions have been met! I must protect and maintain my ninja way! Hachimon Tonkou: Daisan Seimon! Kai!"

A layer of green substance covered Lee's body as he started to release an enormous amount of raw power. His eyes became white and irrational as veins erupted around his temples. To finish his transformation, his skin color acquired the tone of a beetroot. A deafening scream came out of Lee, who kept releasing more and more energy.

"He's opened the third gate. Now he'll attack." Kakashi said.

Gai shook his head. "No, not yet."

"Daiyon Shomon! Kai!"

Releasing the fourth gate caused a small earthquake, and Lee was the epicenter. Peebles and small rocks were being pushed away as Lee crouched and got ready to begin his attack. 'Unbelievable. No Genin can achieve this level through sheer effort. That boy is a true genius.' Kakashi said to himself.

BOOM

Before Gaara could realize what was going on, Lee ran at full speed and connected a kick to the jaw, sending the Ichibi Jinchuriki flying straight into the air and destroying the marble floor while he was at it. The impact was so strong that it actually created a powerful airwave, forcing the spectators to cover their eyes.

But Lee didn't stop there. He appeared behind his opponent and proceeded to deliver the most brutal and painful beating Gaara had ever received. The sand left on the ground was useless as it couldn't reach Gaara, meaning that the Ichibi Jinchuriki had to rely on what was left of his sand armor, which started to crumble apart at a frightening rate. It was simply impossible to keep up with those two as Lee punched and kicked Gaara around, leaving after-images behind. It was like watching seven Lees' beat the crap out of the ragdoll that was now Gaara.

'I can't keep up with him, he's too fast!' Shujinko thought as he struggled to make sense of what was happening. At this point, Lee had become a green hurricane of Taijutsu.

Neji wasn't fairing much better than Shujinko. 'Is that really Lee? But how… When…'

The spandex-wearing Genin could feel every muscle of his body tearing apart. He couldn't maintain his form for much longer. It was time to deliver the final blow, the one that would settle the fight once and for all. "It is time to finish this! Daigo Tomon! Kai!"

Gaara felt as if Lee's fist went through his stomach, and for a fraction of a second, he believed his existence was coming to an end. Suddenly, he felt something tied around his waist. Lee managed to wrap the bandages of his left arm around Gaara, immobilizing him. 'No human can move like this. I cannot defend myself…' Gaara thought in panic as Lee brought him closer and closer…

"URA RENGEEEEEEE!"

BOOOOOOM

The impact completely demolished the ground, creating a large cloud of smoke and dust that temporarily blinded everyone. Lee was sent rolling away with no control over his body, too exhausted and too weak to do anything. Every inch of his body was aching. Hell, even his eyebrows were hurting.

"I can't believe it! Bushy Brows, you won! YOU WON!" Naruto cheered at the top of his lunges. Gaara was nowhere to be seen, but Naruto couldn't care less about him. All he knew was that Lee won the match, even when the odds were against him.

"It's finally over." Sakura breathed out.

Oh, if only that was true.

Shujinko gaped at the scene. Somehow, somehow Gaara was still breathing. His skin was shattered and he barely seemed conscious, but he was alive nonetheless. Inside his crater, the Ichibi Jinchuriki was groaning in pain, shaking like a leaf in the wind.

"No way! How can Gaara still be alive after all he went through?!" Shujinko asked in desperation.

"Before making contact with the ground, Gaara's gourd turned into sand in order to soften his fall. The sand protected Gaara from what would've been his imminent death." Kakashi replied.

Slowly but surely, Gaara raised his hand and directed his sand towards Lee, who was trying to crawl away from him, but failed miserably. He didn't have a single drop of chakra left in his self-abused body. 'This cannot be happening. Even after the Ura Renge, he can still fight.' Lee thought in despair as he helplessly watched his left arm and leg getting covered by the sand.

"Sabaku Kyuu!" Gaara shouted as he closed his hand, crushing Lee's muscles, ligaments and bones. Lee screamed in agony before blacking out. The fight was over for him.

"Now die, you." Gaara whispered as he attempted to end Lee's life for good. Using what little chakra he had left, the Ichibi Jinchuriki manipulated the sand to destroy the rest of his body.

SWOOSH

The sand never got to touch Lee. Gai appeared in front of his unconscious student and smacked Gaara's attack away. It all happened so fast that it took Shujinko a while to figure out what happened. At first, Gaara seemed to be lost for words, but then he covered his temples with his hands and started groaning in pain as if he was experiencing a severe migraine.

"Why? He failed... He failed… Why save him?" he kept muttering, unable to understand why would someone risk his life for the sake of others. That was how mentally broken Gaara was.

"I saved him because he is my student, and someone very important to me."

Temari looked at Gai as if he had two heads. "He's important to him? A Genin?" Back in Sunagakure, the relationship between a sensei and his or her Genin team was a lot more professional and, unfortunately, it was a more accurate representation of the rotten reality of the shinobi world: No bonds, no attachments, no feelings. If you survived, you were merely doing your duty. If you died, then you were never fit to protect your village to begin with.

Once Gaara regained some of his strength, he stood up and walked away without uttering a single word, still too confused by Gai's actions. He didn't bother to make sense of what he just witnessed and assumed it had something to do with foolish human emotions, emotions he never had and never needed.

"Why is Gaara leaving?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi sighed and covered his Sharingan. "It's too late for Lee now. Gaara won the match the minute Gai stepped in."

"The winner of the tenth match is…" Hayate started to say, but what he saw next made his and everyone's jaw reach the floor.

Without anyone noticing it, Lee managed to stand up and face Gaara with his head hanging down, his left arm and leg bleeding heavily. All of his body was shaking like a leaf in the wind. His extended right palm was randomly changing directions.

"I can't believe this…" Gai whispered to himself.

Kakashi was just as surprised as Gai, if not more. 'After all what he went through, he shouldn't be able to move, let alone stand up. Where does this boy gets his strength from?'

Gai approached his student in order to calm him down, but his composure and his self-control were burnt to ashes when he saw the look on Lee's face.

Lee was unconscious. His body was moving thanks to his developed muscle-memory and power of will. He was still standing.

All of his muscles were destroyed.

His left arm and leg were demolished.

His body was suffering the consequences of opening the fifth gate and unleashing the Ura Renge.

He wasn't even conscious…

… And yet, he was still standing.

The spandex-wearing Jounin couldn't stop the incoming tears as he understood the gravity of the situation. In his burning desire to help his student achieve his goals, he ended up neglecting Lee's wellbeing, and he was the only person at fault. Kakashi was right. Because of his selfishness and narrow-minded personality, he encouraged Lee to go the distance without stopping to think where would his path lead him.

This had to be, without a doubt, one of the most emotional and tragic moments Shujinko had ever seen in his life. The bond between Lee and Gai was truly intense. For a brief moment, his mind brought him back to the day when Zabuza died next to Haku, wishing to see him in the afterlife. Shujinko looked at his sensei, who was staring at Gai with a sorrowful expression. 'Is that all we are to him? Nothing but his students?' Shujinko couldn't help but wonder.

As Hayate declared Gaara the winner of the tenth match, a medic team placed Lee on a stretcher and carried him away so they could begin treating his injuries as soon as possible. Kakashi approached Gai and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier, Gai. I was completely out of line. Had I been in your shoes, I would've probably done the same thing. Come on, we have to go. The next match won't start until we leave."

With a slight nod of his head, Gai walked back to the higher level with Kakashi, although this time he kept a safe distance from the rest. Shujinko had the urge to ask him if he was alright, but instead he chose to respect Gai's privacy.

Neji closed his eyes and shook his head. Lee's defeat at the hands of Gaara only further proved the existence of a pre-designed destiny that reigned over every human being. Lee was destined to be a failure, and there was nothing he could do about it. His teammate had the ridiculous urge to be something he was never meant to be, and now he was paying the price for defying his destiny.

The final match between Choji and Dosu went on fairly quickly. Choji used his clan's trademark technique and attacked Dosu as a giant human ball, relying on his brute force. Dosu uncovered his metallic gauntlet and retaliated with his particular style of fighting, using the sound waves produced by Choji's constant attacks to his advantage. Choji became dizzy and accidentally crashed into a wall, knocking himself out in the process and leaving Dosu the last man standing.

"Akimichi Choji is (cough cough) unable to continue. Kinuta Dosu is the winner of the eleventh and final match of the Pre- (cough cough cough) Preliminaries."

* * *

"Congratulations." the Sandaime proclaimed to the winners of the Preliminaries after Choji was sent to the medical station. "You have all gained the right to participate in the third exam. After a written test and a survival test, you might be wondering what could possibly come next, and the answer is quite simple…

… The third exam will be an unrestricted one-on-one tournament between all of you. This tournament will take place in a month so you can all rest and prepare yourselves the way you see fit. You have witnessed the abilities of the candidates here present during these preliminary matches, and no one knows your own fortitudes better than you. Use this time to develop new skills or to improve the ones you already have."

Ibiki waited for the Hokage's consent before taking the lead. "Now, there's a couple of things you need to know about the third exam. Unlike the other two, this exam will be public, so prepare yourselves to fight in front of a big audience. That's another reason for the one-month delay, so that civilians from all villages can attend to the tournament."

Shujinko wrinkled his nose in disagreement. This was supposed to be a shinobi affair, something that concerned ninjas and ninjas only. Civilians weren't supposed to meddle with things they had no business with, at least in his opinion.

"So what? We're just supposed to go from fight to fight until there's no one left? Is that how we become Chunins?" Shikamaru asked.

Hiruzen smirked. "Actually, it is quite different. We are looking for candidates who have what it takes to obtain the next rank. Intelligence, strategic thought, physical and mental strength, those are all qualities of a Chunin. It makes little difference if you win or lose. We are not interested in how many fights you can win, but how well do you perform in a real life-or-death situation. Following that logic, even if you lose in your first match, you might still become a Chunin. In fact, all of you here might become Chunins at the end of the tournament, but there is also the possibility that none of you do. A carefully selected group of proctors will be watching your fights, including myself and Kazekage-dono, our special guest. At the end of the tournament, we will analyze your overall performance and decide who deserves to become a Chunin. Anko, if you may…"

"Of course, Hokage-sama." Anko said as she approached the Genins holding a cardboard box with her hands. "Alright maggots, listen up. This is how we're going to pair you up. You will take a piece of paper from this box and you will say what number you got. If I see any of you exchanging numbers, you'll be automatically disqualified."

One by one, every Genin took a single piece of paper out of the box. Kakashi, who was representing Sasuke, also received one.

"Now, say your number loud and clear." Anko ordered.

Naruto had number three.

Shino had number seven.

Temari had number six.

Gaara had number one.

Shujinko had number nine.

Dosu had number eight.

Kakashi (Sasuke) had number two.

Neji had number four.

Shikamaru had number five

Kankuro had number ten.

Ibiki cleared his throat as he checked his notepad. "Very well, then. This is how the tournament rounds are going to be: The first match will be between Sabakuu no Gaara and Uchiha Sasuke. The second match will be between Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuuga Neji. The third match will be between Nara Shikamaru and Sabakuu no Temari. The fourth match will be between Aburame Shino and Kinuta Dosu. The fifth match will be between Ozuma Shujinko and Sabakuu no Kankuro."

'Damn it. The only fight I missed was Kankuro's, and now I'm paired against him in the tournament.' Shujinko thought in distress. He then remembered he could've been paired against Gaara or Neji. 'Whatever, at least I'm better off than my teammates. Kankuro can't possibly be more of a threat compared to his brother or that Neji guy.'

"One last thing: If any of you fail to show up at the time of your match, consider yourselves out of the tournament." Ibiki warned. "After all, punctuality is a very important aspect in our line of job."

Shujinko nearly scoffed. 'Tell that to Kakashi-sensei'

The Sandaime nodded in agreement. "Considering we have no further issues to discuss, I believe you all deserve some rest. I hereby declare the Preliminaries over. Good luck, and don't forget to make the most out of this month. Your senseis will escort you out of the Forest of Death. Once outside this forest and until the day of the tournament, you are all on your own…"

* * *

(Back in the village)

The first thing Shujinko did when he reached the village was to visit a doctor. The gash on his leg needed some treatment if he wanted to avoid an infection, and he also needed medicine to stop the effects of the soldier pills he consumed during his fight with Kabuto.

The good thing about being a shinobi was the free healthcare. The village financed hospitals and doctors through taxes and the income produced by missions. A shinobi was entitled to free medical attention, and all Shujinko needed to do was to show his headband (and his wound) to the receptionist, who immediately searched for an available doctor. Fortunately, a doctor treated his leg wound with a special healing cream and some bandages. As for the soldier pills, he gave Shujinko a prescribed drug that slowly stopped its effects. In less than thirty minutes, the golden-eyed boy was cleared and free to go.

Under normal circumstances, Shujinko would've been delighted to finally walk through the safe streets of Konoha after spending five days in a forest filled with disgusting creatures and shinobis willing to slit his throat in order to get their hands on a scroll. Under normal circumstances, he would've celebrated the fact that he was alive and still on the race for the rank of Chunin by visiting his favorite sushi bar and eating as much sushi as he could. Under normal circumstances, he would've gathered with his parents and sister straight away to tell them he was alright.

But these were not normal circumstances.

Our brown-haired hero was aimlessly walking through the village, unaware of where he was as he kept looking at the ground, hands inside his pockets. Every now and then he would lift his head and see little kids playing 'ninja', which was basically a glorified version of hide & seek. With a gloomy look on his face, he remembered the times when he used to play ninja. He was pretty good at it. He knew all the good spots.

Of course, that was before he became a Genin. That was before he was thrown into the real world.

Before he had to kill if he wanted to survive.

Hadeki's death set a before and an after in Shujinko's life. With only 12 years, he had already taken away someone's life, and he knew he would eventually be forced to do it again. During the Preliminaries, he managed to stay focused and avoid thinking about Hadeki since it would only make things worse, and he couldn't afford to look weak in front of the competition. But now that he was back, the emotional impact left him stunned.

He didn't blame himself for killing Hadeki. What was done was done, and feeling guilty for killing someone who tried to kill him first simply wasn't worth it. No, he wasn't feeling guilty or remorseful anymore. He felt… deeply confused.

Yes, confused, because the more he thought about what happened, the more perplexed he became. Two human beings fought against each other over a scroll, and one of them ended up dead. And somehow, in a way, that was completely fine. No one blamed him.

And that was what confused him to no end. He and the rest of his fellow classmates were taught at a very young age that a shinobi's first responsibility was towards the village, and that everything they did was for the sake and wellbeing of Konoha. But now, Shujinko didn't know what to do. He didn't see the point anymore.

What was so important about the village?

It took him a while to realize that he was walking through the street where his house was. As he looked up, he saw a group of three individuals walking in the distance. It was his family.

Nanami was happily walking between Daichi and Masumi, holding hands with both her parents. The Ozuma family was enjoying a nice little walk in the afternoon, apparently unaware of Shujinko's presence not too far away from them. Nanami was eagerly chatting with her mother, while the head of the Ozuma clan remained silent, but with a peaceful and satisfied expression on his otherwise stern face.

Something inside Shujinko's chest snapped in half. Before his family members could spot him, he took cover behind a wall and ran away…

* * *

(Hokage Monument, 23:00 P.M.)

Shujinko spent the rest of the day sitting on top of the Shodaime Hokage's head, throwing pebbles down the cliff. The night was cold and slightly windy, but the Ozuma was too busy thinking about what he saw earlier to care about that.

The last time he saw his family was before the first exam, and even though not even a week had passed by, Shujinko could barely recognize himself. Lots of things happened during the first and second exam, and many of those things weighted on his head. His encounter with Orochimaru, his fight with Hadeki, Sasuke's actions under the influence of the Curse Mark, his talk with Kakashi during the middle of the night before the Preliminaries and his match against Kabuto were some of the episodes he couldn't get out of his mind.

But seeing Nanami so happy and so full of life was like an emotional blow that struck Shujinko like a hammer. Knowing that his sweet and innocent little sister would eventually become a kunoichi and face adversities like the ones he just experienced felt awful. He wanted to protect her at all costs, but he knew he couldn't do that forever. He couldn't shield Nanami from the cruel world they were born in. Once she became a Genin, Nanami would be forced to risk her life and defend the village against whatever evil that tried to cause harm.

The thought of Nanami being in danger… Shujinko would never forgive himself if something happened to her. He loved his sister so much he would gladly give away his life if that ensured Nanami's safety.

"Quite an enjoyable night for a walk, is it not?"

The Ozuma gasped as he heard a voice coming from behind. He turned around and saw the Sandaime Hokage standing behind him. He was smoking his tobacco pipe and wore his usual white and red robes, only this time he wasn't using his hat, revealing what little hair he had left. "Ho-Hokage-sama, what are you doing here?" Shujinko asked before mentally slapping himself. Who was he to ask such a question? The Hokage could walk wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted. "I-I-I mean… I wasn't aware of your presence. Please, excuse me for my disrespect."

"There is no need for you to apologize. You have done nothing wrong." Hiruzen assured him. "Although, I must admit I am rather curious. I have been standing here for the last ten minutes, yet you didn't notice me until I spoke. What is it that is troubling you?"

"Oh, it's nothing, really. I was just thinking about… stuff, I guess." Shujinko could barely believe how lame his answer was. "I hope you don't mind, but what are you doing this late at the Hokage Monument?"

"I could ask you the same thing. As for me, I often feel the need to clear my head, and an occasional night walk does wonders." The leader of the village made a pause to enjoy his tobacco pipe. "Every time I come here and see the faces of my predecessors and successor, it reminds me how much the village has changed since its birth and the sacrifices our people have suffered for the sake of a better tomorrow. Maybe they don't realize it, but the reason why hundreds and hundreds of men, women and children peacefully wake up in the morning and sleep in the night is because they know we will do anything to protect the village."

There it was again. Protect the village at all costs. Give away your life for strangers.

"Hokage-sama, I need to ask you something. What's so important about the village? Why do we have to risk our lives every day for people who don't even know our names?"

…

"You are right. Must villagers will never know you or your name, even if you die for them. It is something you must learn to deal with. However, we are shinobis. We do not seek recognition or gratitude from others. Our actions and our deeds often go unnoticed, but we keep on going because we are fueled by the Will of Fire."

"The Will of Fire?" Shujinko repeated.

"Indeed. The Will of Fire is our philosophy, our way of life. It is what gives us the strength to continue fighting against all odds, what helps us build willpower and strength of character. It is the spiritual heritage passed down by our ancestors, and we have the duty to pass it down to the next generation. Because of the Will of Fire, every Konoha shinobi loves, believes, cherishes, and fights to protect our village… Tell me something, who do you think the King is?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"If you had to associate the village with the pieces of a Shogi game, who would be the King?"

Shujinko thought about it, not really understanding what the Hokage was trying to tell him. The King was by far the most important piece of the game. If the King was captured or surrounded, it was game over. It also represented power and authority. "I'm not really sure. Aren't you supposed to be the King, Hokage-sama?"

The Sandaime chuckled slightly. "Just as I thought. I do not blame you for thinking that way. I am not the King. A village can survive without its Hokage, but there can't be a Hokage without a village to look after. Before we part ways, I will tell you one last thing: When you discover who is the real King, you will understand why the village is so important and why we follow the Will of Fire. Have a good night, Shujinko-kun."

With nothing left to say, the Hokage continued his night walk, leaving a thoughtful Shujinko behind.

As he finally came home and greeted his family members, Shujinko couldn't stop thinking about what the Sandaime told him. If he wasn't the King, then who was it? What man or woman could possibly be more important to Konoha than the Hokage himself?

Despite not being very long, his conversation with Hiruzen helped him ease his mind. There was a reason why the village was so important, and that reason was the King.

Now, all he needed to do was to find out who or what was the King.

* * *

Hello, everyone. Did you miss me?

I hope you're all aware of why it took me so long to update. But in case you didn't read my author's note (which I'll delete as soon as I publish this chapter), I'll give you the short version: This chapter got deleted two times during a very busy period in my life.

I apologize if this chapter seems a little rushed, but I wanted to get it over with as soon as possible so that the story can continue. Chapter 26 is almost done and will probably be out here this week.

Glossary:

Omote Renge: Primary Lotus

Ura Renge: Hidden Lotus

Sabaku Kyuu: Sand Coffin

Have a wonderful day, and remember to please like, follow and review if you're enjoying this story so far.

Ja ne!


	26. Chapter 26

**CHAPTER 26: NEW SENSEI, NEW TRAINING**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

The third and final part of the Chunin Exams was a month away, and Shujinko needed to make the most of it if he wanted to succeed. His first opponent was going to be Kankuro, one of the Sand Siblings, meaning that he had to improve quickly in order to increase his chances of winning.

The bad thing about having Kankuro as an opponent right off the bat was that he knew next to nothing about his abilities and weaknesses. He was aware that Kankuro was a Puppet Master, or as most shinobis called them, a puppeteer. Puppetry was an art mostly practiced by ninjas from Sunagakure, and according to the stories, a skillful puppeteer could engage in a fight with multiple adversaries at once and still come out on top.

Kankuro was older than him, most likely had more experience than him, and he watched his fight with Kabuto, meaning that he already had an idea about his fortitudes. Shujinko, on the other hand, had never seen a puppeteer in action before. It was fair to say that Kankuro had the advantage.

And because of that, the Ozuma needed all the help he could get.

He spent the entire morning looking for Kakashi. If he wanted to train under his sensei's guidance, he needed to be the first to approach the silver-haired Jounin and convince him to lend him a hand. Shujinko was worried that Naruto had already asked Kakashi, so he constantly told himself that Naruto was pretty independent and that he probably took it upon himself to train from dusk till dawn without anyone's help. That's what he wanted to believe.

Finally, he spotted his sensei in the middle of the street that led to the hospital where Sasuke was resting. As usual, he was reading his beloved Icha Icha with one hand inside his pocket. One thing that surprised Shujinko about his sensei was that he always read the same novel over and over again. The book wasn't even that long, how could he still find it interesting? "Kakashi-sensei!"

Kakashi turned around, glancing at his student. "Good morning, Shujinko." he said with his lazy voice, as if he was itching to go back to his erotic literature. "Are you on your way to visit Sasuke?"

Shujinko shook his head. "Not really. Sakura told me he's still asleep, and it's not like the nurses will let me in. Anyways, I wanted to ask you if you could train me for my match against Kankuro. You saw how he fought, and I'm sure that I can beat him if you-"

"I'm sorry Shujinko, but I can't do that."

"Wh-What? But why not?" Shujinko stuttered, feeling utterly disappointed.

"I already have someone that I have to look after. We'll be leaving the village for a month, and I can't split my time and attention in favor of you two. That's just how things are."

The golden-eyed boy lowered his head in frustration, clearly frustrated. He knew that it was unreasonable and selfish, but he still felt as if he was entitled to receive training from Kakashi. The man was his sensei, after all. "Are you going to train Naruto?"

The Jounin shook his head. "Naruto already has someone to train him, and to be honest, the man is a better sensei than me when it comes to teaching. I chose him myself."

"So you're going to train Sasuke?" Now Shujinko was starting to get jealous. Why did Sasuke deserved to be trained by Kakashi and not him? Was it because he was an Uchiha?

Unbeknown to him, that was part of the reason why Kakashi was assigned to train Sasuke by the Elder Council. Not only was Sasuke the only survivor of the Uchiha clan, but he was also the prime target of Orochimaru, who already offered him power to achieve his vengeance and introduced him to the Curse Mark. The village couldn't afford to lose the last Uchiha.

Therefore, they ordered Kakashi to keep an eye on Sasuke. The Elder Council wanted to make sure that he was satisfied with how things were going for him in the village, and avoid giving him reasons to leave. A first-class shinobi like Kakashi, who also happened to have a Sharingan and years of experience under his belt, was the perfect choice.

But that wasn't all there was to it. Although Kakashi never allowed himself to be emotionally attached to his students, he could relate to Sasuke: They were two prodigies who lost everything and everyone they cared about at a very young age. The two of them shared the pain of having a dark past, and perhaps that would help Kakashi reach his student.

Of course, Shujinko ignored all of this. After an awkward pause, he finally got over his displeasure and raised his voice. "You don't have to explain anything, sensei. If you want to train Sasuke instead of me, that's your choice." Shujinko then crossed his arms and gave his sensei a defiant look. "But what about me? You can't hang me out to dry while Naruto and Sasuke have someone to help them, I'm your student too."

"Mah, mah, sensei would never do that." Kakashi said with a reassuring tone of voice as he eye-smiled at him. "I already spoke to someone who owes me one or two favors. He agreed to train you while I'm away. Don't worry, he's more than competent. You can learn a lot from him."

"... Oh." Shujinko said after a while, now feeling slightly stupid and embarrassed. "Well… Thank you, I guess. When am I supposed to meet him?"

"He'll be waiting for you at our training grounds at 15:00 P.M. Now, if you excuse me, I have things to do. Good luck, and see you in the next month. Ja ne!" With a lazy wave of his hand, Kakashi said his goodbyes and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

'I definitely need to learn how to do that.' Shujinko said to himself, smirking.

He certainly felt better now that he knew he had someone to help him. Sure, he still would've liked to have Kakashi on his side, but his sensei seemed to vouch for the man that was going to train him, and Shujinko trusted Kakashi's judgment. He still had some time left before his meeting with his new sensei, so he decided to head to the training grounds and do some light warm-ups to be in shape.

* * *

(Training Grounds, 15:00 P.M.)

Shujinko spent an hour and a half doing some exercise and target practice. To his relief, his aim was just as good as ever, he only seemed to miss whenever he placed himself way too far from the wooden dummy, but he supposed it was something that would come naturally in due time.

As he retrieved the last of his shurikens, he sensed a presence behind him. A man with glasses and brown hair was smiling at him. He wore the usual Jounin attire. "Not too bad. If you bend your arm a little more, you might just get the angle right."

"Thanks. Are you the person who Kakashi-sensei told me about? The one that's going to train me?"

"That's right. I'm Yamashiro Aoba, your sensei for the next month. Nice to meet you, Shujinko."

Shujinko bowed in return. "Nice to meet you, too. And thank you for arriving on time. Kakashi-sensei is not nearly as punctual as you are." Somewhere far away, the last member of the Hatake clan sneezed.

Aoba chuckled. "That sounds like Kakashi alright. He would probably arrive late to his own funeral. Well, now that we're done with the introductions, how about we get down to business?" he asked as he gestured Shujinko to follow him.

The brown-haired boy smiled brightly, eager to start with his training. He wondered what Aoba was going to teach him. Maybe a powerful jutsu? A cool technique, perhaps?

'Great, now I'm starting to think like Naruto.'

…

"Soooooo, what are we going to do here, Aoba-sensei?" Shujinko asked with his hands behind his head. After twenty minutes of walking, they reached a river in the middle of the training grounds. Were they going to take a bath or something?

"This is where we'll start your training." Aoba replied. "Before you begin, I need to know something. How good is your chakra control?"

Shujinko shrugged his shoulders. "I guess it's pretty decent. I already dominate the tree-climbing exercise. But I don't know any other kind of exercise that could help me improve my chakra control. Otherwise, I already would've tried it out."

"Good, good. What I'm about to show you is one of the most important techniques all shinobi must learn. Well, it's not really a technique, but an ability. Watch closely..." Aoba bent his knees and jumped towards the river, doing a summersault while in mid-air. But instead of being swallowed by the river, the Tokubetsu Jounin landed on the water, his body perfectly still. Shujinko's eyes widened in shock. "This is known as the water-walking exercise. It's fairly similar to the tree-climbing exercise, but with a slight difference. Here, try it out."

Now that Shujinko thought about it, Kakashi also stood on water when he first fought Zabuza. Back then, he was too busy keeping himself alive to realize what was going on. Excited by the idea of learning such a useful thing, Shujinko tightened his headband and ran towards the river. "Alright, here I go!" he shouted as he focused the same amount of chakra that allowed him to walk on trees in his feet...

SPLASH

Shujinko immediately fell down the river, and the stream took him away. The water wasn't just cold, it was freezing! The Ozuma fought his way out of the river, eventually reaching the edge and burying a kunai into the ground to stop. Shaking like a leaf in the wind, Shujinko finally got out of the river, with Aoba laughing his butt off.

"Kid, you should've thought of taking your clothes off before jumping into a river. You know, because they might get wet."

Now Shujinko wasn't just feeling cold, but also stupid. How could he have forgotten about taking his clothes off first? What was he expecting, to get it right the first time? "I'm s-s-such a b-b-b-baka." he managed to mumble, much to Aoba's amusement

"Don't sweat it. Nobody gets it right during their first attempt." the Tokubetsu Jounin said as he handed Shujinko a towel he had inside his backpack. "Now, I'm sure you already realized you can't walk on water the same way you walk on trees, and the difference is very easy to understand. During the tree-climbing exercise, you accumulate a certain amount of chakra in your feet and use it to stick to the tree's bark. This works because you're dealing with a solid surface. However, water is a liquid substance, meaning that it's in constant movement, or in other words, in constant change. Therefore, you have to be constantly altering your chakra to match the flow of the water's shifting surface. Otherwise, you'll slip again, and we don't want that to happen, ne?"

"R-Right..." Shujinko said as he took of his jacket, t-shirt, pants and boots, leaving only his boxers in place. Aoba then grabbed a long rope and tied it around Shujinko's waist. The other end was tied to a kunai, which Aoba thrusted into the ground with enough strength so that if (and when) Shujinko slipped, the current wouldn't take him away.

Taking a deep breath, Shujinko prepared himself and decided to do the same thing he did back when he was doing the tree-climbing exercise: Instead of running in a straight direction in hopes of guessing the correct amount of chakra, he would carefully place his feet on the water and take several small steps in order to adjust his chakra until it became second nature.

Of course, it was always easier said than done.

The first attempts were a failure, to say the least. He couldn't last twenty seconds before he slipped, and every time he had to face the unforgiving cold of the water that made his body numb. He asked Aoba for help, but the Tokubetsu Jounin said that there really wasn't anything he could do to help and that he just had to keep going if he wanted to get the hang of it. Annoyed by his lack of success, Shujinko put more effort into his attempts and his body slowly got used to the cold.

A few hours passed, and little by little, he noticed he could now stand on the water a little longer than before. He couldn't run, or even walk normally, but it was a start. The water didn't even felt that cold now. The only thing that bothered him was that he couldn't move without breaking his concentration, meaning that he had to put attention to every single one of his moves whether they were intentional or not. Aoba merely sat on top of a tree branch reading a book, keeping an eye on his new student from a distance. It was true that there wasn't much he could do for him right now, but he would at least wait there until he decided it was time to stop.

And the time to stop was now. Shujinko had already wasted enough chakra trying to get the exercise down, and besides, there wasn't enough sunlight to keep reading. Aoba quickly made a bonfire to keep both the towel and the clothes warm. Once they were dry, he addressed Shujinko, who was standing completely still on the water. "Oi, Shujinko, I think we can call it a day. You've been going at it long enough."

"But sensei, I can keep going." Shujinko replied. "I just need a little mo-"

SPLASH

And once again, the Genin slipped. At this point, he didn't even care about the water. He had fallen so many times that he learned how to deal with it.

"That's true, but it's unlikely that you'll make an improvement if you get tired. And besides, it's getting dark. I don't want you to get sick."

"Come on, it's not that la... Aaahhh... Aaaaahhhchooo!" Shujinko sneezed.

The smirk on Aoba's face didn't go unnoticed by the Ozuma.

* * *

"Yup, you definitely have a fever." Masumi said as she retrieved her hand from her son's forehead. She and Nanami were giving Shujinko some company, who came home with a headache and covered in sweat. "Nanami, could you be a darling and bring some wet towels? Your brother could use some." she asked her daughter, who nodded and eagerly left the room. "What were you doing this late outside? I know you qualified to the third part of the Chunin Exams, but you shouldn't risk your health like that."

Shujinko sighed, trying to find the right words to appease his mother. In general, civilian mothers weren't quite aware of the sacrifice their shinobi son or daughter had to do in order to improve. Shujinko didn't blame her, though. It was only natural for a mother to care for her children. "It's not a big deal. I should be fine by tomorrow morning. And even if I'm not, I still have to train."

"Shujinko, you can't be always thinking about training. It's just not good for you." Masumi said, looking at her son with concern. "We've been worried about you, you know. You don't spend time with us, you come home late and leave early, and the few chances that we have to talk to you, you barely acknowledge us. What's going on with you?"

The brown-haired boy twitched his mouth in irritation. He hated discussing things with his mother, especially when he knew she had a valid point. "Kaa-san, you don't get it. I'm a ninja, I have to train. If everything goes alright, I might just become a Chunin by the end of the month. I can't afford to be lazy."

Masumi gave Shujinko a severe look as she placed her hands on her hips, an unmistakable sign of danger. "You and I both know that's not all there is to it. In case you forgot, I'm your mother, and I have the right to know what's troubling you."

"For the last time, there's nothing wrong with me." Shujinko replied, raising his voice considerably.

"Don't you dare use that tone on me, young man!" Masumi snapped. "You have no idea how it feels to wait for you to get back home, wondering if you're actually coming back at all! And now that you're home, the only thing you care about is your training and it's driving me nuts! It's always the same with you!"

Shujinko shouted even louder. "Well, maybe you should be grateful it's always the same with me! If I hadn't trained the way I have to this day, I could very well be dead right now! Is that what you want, huh!? You'd rather have a dead son instead of a busy one!?"

...

"... How can you say something like that?" Masumi whispered. It was only then when Shujinko realized his mother was crying, and he started to feel terrible.

He never intended to make his mother cry, even though the words he spoke had an ounce of truth. Hadeki tried to kill him, and he survived because he was the better shinobi at the end of the day. But if there was one thing Shujinko was sure of was that he was going to face much more dangerous enemies in the future, and he needed to be ready. The third exam had individuals like Neji and Gaara, and Shujinko refused to be any less of a threat to them as they were to him. But those two were currently at another level, a level that he had yet to reach.

Nonetheless, Masumi also had a point. He had no excuse for his selfishness. There he was, deliberately ignoring his parents for his own reasons when there were hundreds of kids who would literally do anything to have a mother and a father by their side, if only just for one day. Hell, his two male teammates were orphans. Naruto never had any parents or a sibling. In fact, Shujinko was willing to bet Iruka was the closest thing Naruto had to a relative (everybody knew that, despite being strict and having high expectations, Iruka had a soft spot for Naruto). Sasuke grew up in an ancient and proud clan, just to have everything taken away from him at a young age and in the bloodiest way imaginable.

"I'm sorry, kaa-san. I didn't mean it that way." Shujinko said as he lowered his gaze. He couldn't bear to look at his mother crying. "The last few days haven't been... easy to deal with at all. There are so many things going on right now, and I guess I'm just... afraid of screwing everything up. I swear I'll make it up to you and tou-san and Nanami, but please try to understand that-"

Masumi raised her hand, interrupting her son's speech. "It's alright, sweetie. I do understand. You don't have to apologize, I just... (sniff) I just never thought it would be like this. It's hard for a mother to see her son grow up like you have. While I'm here working as a secretary, you're out there risking your life for the sake of this village every day. It doesn't feel right."

Maybe Masumi was unaware of it, but there were hundreds of mothers in the village who shared her feelings, kunoichis and civilians alike. The bond between a mother and her child was stronger than any Kekkei Genkai in existence, and more powerful than any jutsu ever conceived. Women would travel any distance and sacrifice everything they cared about for the sake of their off springs.

After a long and rather awkward minute of silence, the heir of the Ozuma clan spoke up. "If it's any consolation, you can be sure that I would never do anything to hurt you, tou-san or Nanami." Shujinko said. He really had no idea what else to say, so he decided to play it safe and hope for the best.

"I know, I know." Masumi replied, using the sleeve of her dress to wipe out her tears. "I'm sorry you have to deal with such a sappy mom."

Shujinko cracked a small smile, feeling happy for finally patching things up with his mom. In that moment, Nanami entered the scene with a couple of wet towels on her hands and apologizing for her delay. She seemed oblivious towards the discussion that had just taken place between Shujinko and Masumi, which was probably for the best. The towels slowly started to reduce the fever, and it wasn't long before Shujinko was sleeping like a baby.

* * *

After a week and a half of gruesome training and burning fevers, Shujinko finally dominated the water-walking exercise to the point of near perfection.

Aoba proved to be quite a good teacher. He often gave good advice and always had a supportive attitude that encouraged Shujinko to push his limits. Not only did he taught his student how to walk on water, but also how to run, jump and move around while maintaining an adequate amount of chakra concentrated in his feet. His final test was a mock fight against Aoba in which he was not allowed to stand on solid ground. Needless to say, Aoba won, but the Tokubetsu Jounin was nonetheless impressed by Shujinko's ability to adapt to the circumstances. With some more practice, Shujinko would eventually be able to fight just like he did on the ground.

"Congratulations, Shujinko. We can finally begin the second part of our training." Aoba said. Both student and sensei were enjoying a home-made meal of rice balls and dumplings, courtesy of Masumi, who insisted (more like ordered) Shujinko to give some food to the Tokubetsu Jounin as a way of expressing his gratitude.

"Are you sure about that, Aoba-sensei?" Shujinko asked as he greedily took the biggest dumpling and ate it. His mother's cooking was simply magnificent. "Don't get me wrong. I'm very happy for how things are going with my training, but I still feel like I need to improve. I've yet to figure out how to perform jutsus while moving on top of the water' surface."

Aoba shrugged his shoulders. "True, but you can work on that later on. Besides, I didn't teach you how to walk on water just for fun. I wanted you to develop a solid chakra control, which you'll definitely need if you want to learn the jutsu I'm about to show you."

Shujinko's ears perked up almost instantly. A new jutsu? Awesome! He couldn't remember the last time Kakashi had taught him a jutsu... In fact, now that he thought about it, Kakashi had never taught him anything besides the tree-walking exercise and the importance of teamwork. The man had copied a thousand jutsus with his Sharingan, surely he could've taken the time to teach his students at least one of them. But to be fair, Shujinko never asked him.

Once the meal was over, Aoba stretched his back and waited for Shujinko to pick up the leftovers. When he was finished, the Tokubetsu Jounin addressed the Ozuma with a strangely authoritarian tone of voice. "Listen very carefully, Shujinko. This jutsu can be dangerous to use, and something very bad can happen to you if you mess around. This is not some flashy technique that you can execute whenever you feel like it. In fact, you may only use it during a dire situation and when you're confident you can pull it out. I'm only teaching you this jutsu because I believe you're reasonable enough to use it wisely and because this might get you the edge you need to win. In case I'm not being clear enough, let me rephrase my warning: This technique belongs to the Kinjutsu category, which I'm assuming it speaks for itself. However, if you don't feel like you're ready, tell me right away and we'll resume our training. What do you say?"

Shujinko looked down as he hesitated to respond. Learning a new technique was one thing, but a Kinjutsu was something entirely different. Regardless of the danger that came with the proposal, Shujinko had to admit he was tempted. Aoba was right, he needed to have an ace under his sleeve if he was to confront Kankuro on equal terms. "I thought it was illegal to use Kinjutsu." he commented, trying to buy some time for himself.

"That's not entirely true. Some jutsus fall under this category because of their effects on the user. Exhaustion, internal and external damage, mental strain, psychological harm, those are the most common consequences that come with the use of these techniques. But don't be confused. The term 'forbidden' is not absolute when it comes to Kinjutsu. As long as you know your limits and acknowledge the danger behind these jutsus, you may execute some of them with no legal repercussion whatsoever."

Instead of helping him with his decision, the information he received from Aoba only increased Shujinko's uncertainty. He hated not knowing what to do, especially during times when he needed to be assertive towards the odds. He remembered Lee's destroyed body after using the Ura Renge, and for a brief moment, he imagined himself crawling away from Gaara's sand after using the forbidden jutsu that Aoba was offering to teach him.

But then, he also remembered the Genin who were going to participate in the final exam. Gaara was as powerful as he was ruthless, and definitely the most dangerous opponent out there. His control over sand gave him both a terrific offense and defense.

Neji's natural talent and developed Byakugan was a fearsome combination. A close-distance combat against him was destined to failure, and if Neji showed no hesitation when he tried to kill Hinata, a member of his own clan, then it was safe to assume that he would show no mercy against Naruto or whoever he had in front of him.

Sasuke was training under the guidance of Kakashi. Shujinko didn't want to think how much someone as prodigious as Sasuke could improve after spending a month with the infamous Copy Ninja, working day and night. With the abilities that the Sharingan provided, the heir to the Uchiha clan could learn a huge number of techniques and add them to his arsenal. If that wasn't enough, Kakashi would most likely device a genius strategy for Sasuke to use against Gaara.

Shujinko already knew how to move on water, which was definitely a useful skill to have, but it simply wasn't enough to succeed. And now that he was being offered a chance to become stronger on a silver platter, he was actually doubting himself? Eyes gleaming with determination, Shujinko looked at his sensei and gave him his answer. "Let's do it. I don't care what it takes, I'm going to learn this jutsu before the third exam."

"That's quite a bold statement, but I think you have what it takes." Aoba replied. "So be it. This technique is called Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu?" the Ozuma repeated, clearly taken by surprise. "I know that technique. Well, I don't really know how it works, but I've seen it in action before. It's like an advanced version of the regular Bunshin no Jutsu, am I right?"

"You could say that, yes, but it's a lot more complicated than that. You see, a shadow clone is a lot more complex than an intangible copy of yourself. They can interact with their surroundings and actually have a mind of their own, at least to a degree. Their most precious ability is their usefulness: Whatever you want them to do, they'll do it." Aoba cleared his throat before continuing with his explanation. "Of course, this technique is not branded a Kinjutsu without a good reason. Can you imagine why?"

The golden-eyed boy nodded. "Because it takes more chakra to make them."

"That's correct. When you use this jutsu, you split your chakra evenly between you and your clones. If you produce one clone, you'll be left with half your chakra. If you produce two clones, you'll be left with one third of your chakra. If you produce three clones, you'll be left with one quarter of your chakra. The list goes on and on."

'That means... All of those times when Naruto created his clones... His chakra was divided in equal parts.' Shujinko went pale as he tried to conceive the preposterous amount of chakra that his teammate possessed. Naruto could create thirty shadow clones without even breaking a sweat. 'The Kyuubi must have something to do with it. It's impossible to be born with chakra levels that big.'

"This is where your water-walking training takes place. You have to make sure you don't waste your chakra when attempting to use this jutsu. If you try to create a clone with less than half your chakra, you can be sure that the jutsu will fail and your energy will be thrown down the toilet. On the other hand, if you use way too much chakra, your stamina and your strength will be drastically reduced, and there's no guarantee that your clone will actually be of use. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Excellent. Now take a step back and watch closely." Shujinko did as told and gave Aoba some space. The Tokubetsu Jounin inhaled deeply and crossed his fingers. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOF

An exact replica of Aoba appeared by his side. While other Genins would surely be impressed by the demonstration, the brown-haired boy was used to seeing Naruto create multiple clones at once. But now that he understood the implications of mastering such a high-level technique, he found a whole new level of appreciation.

"Before you start practicing, remember that one good hit will dispel the clone." Aoba said. With a swift move of his hand, he grabbed a kunai and slashed the clone, who immediately disappeared in a cloud of smoke. "That's why you have to make sure to keep your clone out of danger if the situation allows it. Otherwise you'll have to replace it with another clone, which means more waste of chakra."

Nodding in understanding, the brown-haired boy took a deep breath and closed his eyes in deep concentration before crossing his fingers. Measuring chakra was mostly a matter of instinct more than anything. It was easier for some people like Sakura, who had an adequate chakra reserve and a superb chakra control. Thanks to the water-walking exercise, it became less difficult for him to accurately calculate the amount of chakra he had and how much he needed to use.

However, there was something that troubled Shujinko. Knowing that one miserable drop of chakra could be the difference between success and failure was extremely irritating, almost discouraging. Every time he tried to create a shadow clone, he hesitated and ended up doing nothing except looking like a fool.

'For Kami's sake, stop being such a chicken and just try the damn jutsu already!' Shujinko shouted inside his head. His fear for failure, combined with the anxiety and the paranoia, ultimately got the better of Shujinko and made him loose his concentration. "Ka-Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOF

Shujinko was so nervous he accidentally slipped and fell on his behind while a cloud of smoke appeared right next to him. With his heart beating dangerously fast, he waited for the smoke to dissipate. Once it was completely gone, the smoke revealed what had to be, without a doubt… the most pathetic excuse of a clone to ever exist.

It honestly looked just as bad as Naruto's clones back in the Academy, and that was being generous. Shujinko's clone had extremely pale skin, grayish hair, and judging by the look on its face, it probably had an advanced case of mental retardation. The damn thing was even drooling, for crying out loud! It made him feel sick just by looking at it.

"Just as I expected. You didn't pour the correct amount of chakra into the jutsu." Aoba said, fighting back the urge to snicker at Shujinko's failed attempt. "This is why it's so important to measure your chakra. But don't worry about it. Just like the water-walking exercise, it'll come naturally over time."

POOF

The clone was so weak that it dispelled itself. Shujinko huffed in frustration and stood up, but as soon as he was back up on his feet, a sudden wave of exhaustion took over by surprise and his legs couldn't support him no more. Before he could do something about it, the golden-eyed boy was on his knees, sweating and gasping for breath. A considerable portion of his chakra was drained in just one attempt, and while he was used to being low on chakra, he didn't expect the aftermath to happen so quickly.

Aoba quickly came to his aid and helped him stand up. "Take it easy and breath slowly. You're not used to this kind of training. Here, have some water."

Shujinko slowly shook his head. "I'm okay." he said between short gasps. "I messed up at the end. I couldn't stop thinking about my chakra, and I got so nervous that I lost my concentration." The Ozuma took a deep breath and met his sensei's eyes. "I'm sorry, I promise I won't screw up again. With more time, I'm sure I can at least- "

"You're afraid of failure, aren't you?" Aoba interrupted him. The Ozuma swallowed his pride and nodded after a minute of silence. "I don't blame you. You have the skill and the mindset to achieve what you want, but you don't allow yourself any room for lack of success. Get rid of that. One loss can teach you more than ten victories put together."

The golden-eyed boy thought about it for a minute, and came to the conclusion that Aoba was right. While his talent and his desire for perfection often worked as a blessing, it also worked as a hindrance when he didn't achieve what he wanted. He was no quitter, that was for sure, but every failed attempt not only damaged his pride, but also made him more frustrated. Taking a deep breath, Shujinko calmed down and promised he would be more lenient with himself from now on. "Thanks, Aoba-sensei. I'll try again."

"No. You've already wasted enough chakra. Take a break and try again once you're feeling better."

"But sensei, I-"

"No."

"Bu-"

"I said no."

"… Fine."

* * *

(22:00 P.M.)

Shujinko groaned as the warmth of his bedsheets slowly healed his cold and exhausted body. In terms of physical condition, he wasn't exactly tired, but the amount of chakra he used that day while trying to learn the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu made him feel extremely fragile. It was like having an endless pit inside his stomach.

He made no significant progress with the jutsu whatsoever. The rest of his clones were just as pathetic as the first one. None of them would last longer than a minute before disappearing in a cloud of smoke, and they still looked like the result of a failed genetic experiment. By the end of the day, his chakra was so low Aoba had to end the training earlier than usual and helped Shujinko get back home safely. He even suspended tomorrow's training session so his student could rest properly and gain most of his strength back.

The Shujinko of the past would think this day was a complete waste of time. However, Shujinko didn't feel that way, not anymore. What Aoba said really struck Shujinko: His fear of failure was keeping him down. If he wanted to exploit all of his potential, he needed to get rid of his obsession for perfection and embrace the fact that he was no genius, that he had to work hard like everyone else, learn from his mistakes and be more open-minded.

"… _One loss can teach you more than ten victories put together."_

'As long as I protect my teammates and those I care for; I'll gladly lose a hundred times. I will become strong…'

* * *

As promised, here is chapter 26.

Maybe some of you are wondering why I chose Aoba to be Shujinko's temporary sensei. In my opinion, he's a very competent guy. After all, he's a Tokubetsu Jounin with experience and knowledge, but not overpowered. And besides, his personality is somewhat similar to Shujinko's, so they get along pretty well.

As for Shujinko learning the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, I understand if you're feeling skeptical about it. While it's definitely uncommon, it's not impossible for a Genin to make a shadow clone with proper training. I'm not talking about Kakashi or Itachi, who were prodigies from a very young age. Naruto and Gaara are exceptions due to their status as Jinchurikis, meaning that they can rely on their large chakra reserves. But if someone like Konohamaru can do it at age 12-13, I don't see why Shujinko shouldn't be able to pull it off. Don't worry, he won't be creating dozens of shadow clones anytime soon.

Anyways, I hope you're all satisfied with the outcome. Shujinko is now able to walk/run on water and he's on his way to learn the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Next chapter, Shujinko will be introduced to a very special character whom we all love.

If you like way things are going, feel free to review, favorite and/or follow this story.

Ja ne!


	27. Chapter 27

**CHAPTER 27: NEW PERSPECTIVES, NEW ROADS**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

'I forgot how nice it is to do nothing every now and then.' Shujinko thought as he walked through the streets of Konoha, making his way to Yoi Sakana, his favorite sushi bar in all of the village.

Due to the intense training that took place yesterday, Aoba had the courtesy to give Shujinko a day off so he could rest and be ready for the next session, which promised to be brutal. The brown-haired boy made sure to avoid any activities that required too much effort and decided to go for a walk instead. Maybe he would spend an hour or two relaxing in the hot springs after eating lunch.

Because he wasn't planning on doing any kind of training today, Shujinko left his usual clothes at home, including his headband. He was wearing a more comfortable outfit that consisted of a dark blue shirt, gray pants, and his usual shinobi boots. He could easily pass for a civilian.

He was about to reach the street where Yoi Sakana was located when he heard a squeaky voice nearby. "Aaargh, that stupid old pervert! He dumped me again!"

Shujinko blinked as he recognized Naruto's voice. Indeed, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki was just coming out of a random store with his arms crossed in a clear sign of frustration. "Naruto?"

"Huh?" Naruto turned around with a surprised look on his face. "Oh, hey there, Shujinko. What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way to get lunch until I heard you ranting about being dumped by an old pervert." Shujinko replied as he raised an eyebrow. "Care to explain?"

"Oh, that? Yeah, it's nothing new. Ero-sennin promised to be here around the morning. He said he was gonna help me with my training, but all he really does is peep on women like the dirty pervert he is."

…

Shujinko blinked three times before coming up with a question. "Why on Earth are you getting help from someone like that? And why do you call him Ero-sennin?"

Naruto gave his teammate a mischievous grin. "I know he's a pervert and all, but he's also super strong! He taught me how to walk on water, and now he's helping me with this summoning stuff or something like that. Oh, and I call him Ero-sennin because he's supposed to be a sage, or at least that's what he told me. His real name is Jariyi… Jiriya… Jariyai…" Naruto wrinkled his nose as he struggled to remember the name of the pervert.

Something clicked inside Shujinko's head. According to what the Hokage once told him, a Sage was someone who had the ability to drew energy from nature and blend it with his own chakra, creating Senjutsu chakra. The Hokage also mentioned something about a Sage being one of his pupils. His name was…

"… Jiraiya?"

"Yeah, that's it!" Naruto exclaimed with glee. "I had no idea you already knew Ero-sennin."

Shujinko's disbelief was only equal to his astonishment. Naruto was receiving lessons from none other than one of the Sannin… and the moron didn't even know his name? At the same time, he was also jealous. While Aoba proved to be a good teacher, Shujinko knew he wasn't as strong as Kakashi, let alone the Gama-sennin. Despite feeling guilty about it, the Ozuma had no doubt he would've chosen to train with the Sannin instead of Aoba, and to be fair, anyone with half a brain would've done the same. "I don't really know him, I just know his name." Shujinko replied.

A light bulb appeared on top of Shujinko's head as he suddenly came up with a brilliant idea. What if Naruto introduced him to Jiraiya? The man was obviously more experienced than him in the use of Nature Chakra, and although Shujinko was no stranger to Senjutsu thanks to the Karura Tensei, it would be fascinating to learn more about it from an actual expert. This could be the opportunity of a life time.

"Ne, Naruto, do you think I could talk to Jiraiya-sama?"

The Uzumaki gave him a confused look. "You want to talk to Ero-sennin? Why?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe he can tell me more about himself. I've always wanted to meet him." Shujinko said while shrugging his shoulders, making sure not to sound too excited.

"… Well, there's not much to say about Ero-sennin. From what I've seen, he's just a pervert who knows a lot of cool tricks. But if you really want to talk to him, sure, I don't see why not. He's probably looking for ladies to spy on right now, and I think I know where he is. Come on, let's ruin his little party."

The golden-eyed boy thanked Naruto and the two of them walked together. On their journey to find the Sannin, Shujinko took the time to ask his teammate some questions regarding Jiraiya. As it turns out, the Uzumaki first met Jiraiya during his water-walking training with a Tokubetsu Jounin called Ebisu (whom, according to Naruto, was also a pervert) at the hot springs. One thing led to another, and after chasing the man for an eternity, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki eventually convinced the erotic writer to help him.

What really surprised Shujinko was the way Naruto described Jiraiya. One would think someone as strong and legendary as the Gama-sennin was a heroic and noble individual. But apparently, he was nothing like that. He constantly avoided Naruto on purpose, spent his time peeping on women or attempting to seduce them, and at one point he even asked Naruto to lend him some cash instead of using his own. Seriously, what kind of grown-up asked a twelve year-old boy for money? Shujinko had yet to see Jiraiya, and he already had a bad first impression.

For a brief moment, Shujinko was tempted to ask Naruto about the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. It was funny how Naruto, despite being the dead-last of the class, knew a technique that would take even the most talented Genins a considerable amount of time and practice to learn. He quickly dismissed the idea, however. Even though the blonde wasn't exactly the sharpest kunai of the holster, there was a chance he might get suspicious and eventually see through Shujinko's sudden interest. The Ozuma wanted to keep his ace under the sleeve a secret, after all. Furthermore, Shujinko had the feeling not even Naruto himself knew how the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu actually worked.

After a while, the two Genins reached the outskirts of the village. They came across a river, where four young ladies in their mid-twenties were taking a bath, wearing nothing but small swimsuits that barely covered their bodies. They were all laughing and playfully splashing water at each other, enjoying their privacy and completely unaware of the man that was hiding behind a bush not too far away from the river.

"There he is. I told you he was a pervert!" Naruto said in a loud whisper, pointing at the individual. He had long, spiky hair of white color and wore a green short kimono with matching pants. He also wore a red, sleeveless haori over the kimono. There was a large scroll hanging from his back.

Naruto and Shujinko came closer to Jiraiya, who was either unaware of their presence or didn't bother to acknowledge them as he continued to shamelessly spy on the ladies, occasionally letting out a perverted giggle or two. Shujinko was rather disgusted by the scene.

"Oi, Ero-sennin, stop with the peeping already and help me. You can look at girls later." Naruto said once they were close enough to the Sage.

Jiraiya waved his hand in a dismissing manner, still looking at the beautiful group of women with almost palpable lust. "Cut it out, gaki. I'm busy right now."

Shujinko was about to make his presence known until the Uzumaki found a better way to call his attention. "ERO-SENNIN, I TOLD YOU TO STOP LOOKING AT GIRLS!"

The effect was immediate. Upon hearing Naruto's shout, the four girls shrieked as they quickly grabbed their belongings and ran away from the place. Jiraiya turned around and finally looked at the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, his face twisting in fury. "Look at what you did, gaki! Do you have any idea how long it took me to find those ladies?! Now they'll never come here ever again!"

"Well, it serves you right for being a pervert!"

"How many times do I have to tell you?! I'm not just some random pervert, I'm a super pervert and proud of it!"

"How the hell is that something to be proud of?! There's nothing great about peeping on ladies who don't want anything to do with you anyway!"

"It's not peeping! It's called research! And the only reason you can't understand its beauty is because you're a snot-nosed knucklehead!" Smoke was coming from Jiraiya's nostrils by now. It was only then when he realized there was another boy witnessing the deplorable scandal. Said boy had a large sweat drop running down his head. "And who are you supposed to be?"

Resisting the urge to criticize the man's lack of morals, Shujinko bowed deeply as he raised his voice. "My name is Ozuma Shujinko. It's an honor to meet you, Jiraiya-sama." That last sentence wasn't exactly true, but at least it made him look politer.

The Sage crossed his arms and gave Naruto a reproachful look. "Hmpf, at least this one shows more respect to the elder and wiser. It wouldn't hurt you to take a page out of his book, Naruto." Shujinko mentally cheered. Everything was going well so far.

The Uzumaki snorted and placed his hands behind his head. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. He's only acting nice because he wants to talk to you, that's all." Shujinko's eye twitched as he tried his best not to strangle his teammate to death. Leave it to Naruto to screw everything up. "By the way, you promised to help me with that summoning thingy. I still get nothing but useless tadpoles."

"You still can't summon anything else other than tadpoles? Seriously, how hopeless are you?"

"Oi, take that back! I wouldn't be asking for your help if I wasn't so desperate. Just do me a favor and show me how it's done one last time. You can go back to your so-called research afterward."

Jiraiya placed his fingers under his chin and 'hummed'. "I did promise to help you with the Kuchiyose no Jutsu, and if say no, you'll probably find a way to pester me until I agree. Alright, let's get this over with. You see that cliff over there? That's where we'll continue our training. You go first, I have to write my ideas down while there's still some inspiration left in me."

Shujinko looked at Jiraiya's notepad that was lying on the ground. It reminded him of Lee's notepad, with the exception that Lee used that notepad to write down whatever advice Gai gave him, regardless of their usefulness. Jiraiya's notepad, on the other hand, was most likely filled with foul content and obscenities.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Naruto exclaimed with a foxy grin. "Don't take too long, Ero-sennin!"

"Stop calling me that!" Jiraiya shouted back, but Naruto was already too far away, making the Sage sigh in exasperation. "That boy will be the death of me one day." he muttered under his breath. Then, he cast his gaze upon Shujinko. "You're still here?"

"I-uh… Well…"

"Listen gaki, whatever it is that you're trying to sell me, I'm not buying. Don't bother to ask me if I can train you, I already have my hands full with your teammate. Although, if you want my autograph, I suppose I can-"

"Jiraiya-sama, can you please tell me what do you know about Senjutsu?"

…

* * *

…

"Jiraiya-sama, can you please tell me what do you know about Senjutsu?"

Jiraiya instantly closed his mouth as soon as the brown-haired boy finished his request, barely believing what he just heard. What the hell? How could this insignificant little runt know something as dangerous and complex as Senjutsu? He remained silent for a while, giving Shujinko a cold, serious look. "… That's not something young Genins like you should trifle with."

"But you do know about it, don't you?" Shujinko insisted.

"Slow down, kid. First, you're going to answer me a couple of things I have in mind. Who are you? Who told you about Senjutsu and how much do you know about it?"

Shujinko tilted his head. "Well, as I said before, my name is Ozuma Shujinko. As for the second question, everything I know about Senjutsu, which is not that much to be honest, was told to me by Hokage-sama."

Now things were getting really, really strange. Jiraiya knew Hiruzen very well, and his sensei would never do something as preposterous as giving away information about Senjutsu to young boys without a very good reason behind. If what this boy said was true, then the old geezer saw fit to reveal the secrets of nature to him. This obviously led to another question. "And why would he do that? How do I know you're not lying?"

The Ozuma was tempted to say 'Because I've been constantly told that I'm terrible at lying', but he supposed Jiraiya was expecting a much more solid and believable answer. "It's kind of a long story. How much time do you have?"

In response, Jiraiya created a shadow clone and instructed it to go help Naruto with his summoning issues. The clone obeyed and went after Naruto without uttering a single word. "I believe I have enough time." Jiraiya said as he took a seat and gestured the golden-eyed boy to do the same. "You wanted my attention? Congratulations, now you have it. Start explaining…"

…

(30 minutes later)

"… and that's why I wanted to talk to you, Jiraiya-sama. I figured if you were a Sage too, then you could teach me what you know about Senjutsu in general."

Jiraiya sat there in silence, still processing all the information he just received. Shujinko told him about the Ozuma clan, the Karura Tensei, the Hawk Sage Mode, and just about everything he knew about Senjutsu. He was even kind enough to show the Karura Tensei in action. Jiraiya watched in astonishment how easily Shujinko attracted Nature Chakra and entered Sage Mode in a matter of seconds, although it was hard to tell how impressed he was by looking at his nearly emotionless face.

It all started to make sense now. Due to the history of the Ozuma clan, Shujinko was bound to discover Senjutsu sooner or later, and it was only fitting for the Hokage to inform Shujinko about his origins since he was the one who allowed the survivors of the Ozuma clan to stay in the village in the first place.

This boy… The power he held and what he could do with it was… uncertain. It was already dangerous that a Genin knew about Senjutsu, but Shujinko was a special case. Because the Karura Tensei granted him the ability to absorb Nature Chakra in a matter of seconds with no adverse effects whatsoever, Shujinko was unaware of the actual risks when dealing with Senjutsu. That was why he wanted to know more about his powers. It was an ability that came naturally to him despite having little to no knowledge about it. Any other shinobi who attempted to learn how to become one with nature had to be aware of the possible consequences should he or she mess up.

At this point, it was obvious Shujinko had a clear advantage over the others when it came to this specific field. Scratch that, he was way above the others and the boy probably knew it. But even though, the kid still desired more knowledge about how Senjutsu worked. He didn't take his gift for granted and seized the opportunity to talk to an expert in order to have a deeper understanding of the subject. If anything, Shujinko was being quite level-headed and mature.

But having a nearly extinct Kekkei Genkai also made him a serious target. There were people out there that would gladly kill for such a fascinating power as the one granted by the Karura Tensei. Kumogakure had a long history of stealing bloodlines to further invigorate its military strength, and their thirst for power ultimately caused the 'Hyuuga Affair', which ended up with the death of Hyuuga Hizashi and the further division between the family branches of the Hyuuga clan.

Orochimaru was another threat. That hideous snake was always lurking around, always searching for power. His goal was to learn every jutsu known to mankind, and he would not rest until he became somewhat of a living shinobi god. His level of depravation and wickedness was only equal to his ambition. What was worse, Orochimaru already made contact with Shujinko during the Chunin Exams and knew of his existence, at least according to what Hiruzen told him.

Taking this into consideration, Jiraiya had one option left: He had to share his knowledge if he wanted the kid to survive in the future. Kami knew how many other unknown dangers were out there, and quite honestly, he doubted he would ever interact with Shujinko ever again. This could be his last chance to learn more about the mystical and deadly ways of nature.

"Alright, that was quite the history lesson." Jiraiya said after clearing his throat. "As for what the Sandaime told you about Senjutsu, you were right to think that there was more to it. Before I begin, you need to understand that the only reason why I'm explaining this to you is because you're an exception, and a very unique one at that. If the Sandaime deemed you worthy of such knowledge, then so will I."

Shujinko leaned in closer, swallowing.

"The first thing you need to know is that it's never, ever safe to meddle with nature. Even you should be careful with your bloodline, no matter how confident you are. Only a handful of people get the chance to learn Senjutsu, and in case you were wondering, it's a long, difficult and risky process. Even the most talented ninjas struggle with it."

"As you ought to know by now, your chakra is the combination of physical energy and spiritual energy. Senjutsu adds a third element into the equation: Nature energy. If you successfully combine these three types of energies, you get Senjutsu chakra as a result. Nature energy is everywhere: It's in the water we drink, the ground we walk, the air we breathe, you get the idea."

"But I've never felt that way before." Shujinko interrupted. "Whenever I enter the Hawk Sage Mode, I don't really feel a connection between me and nature. It just comes…"

"Instinctively?" Jiraiya guessed, to which Shujinko nodded. "Don't blame yourself. Your Kekkei Genkai allows you to gather nature energy within seconds. You never had to learn how to do it because it was natural for you. However, that's not the case for the rest of us. In order to attract and combine our chakras with the outside energy, a Sage must remain absolutely still for an uncertain amount of time. During that period of time, the user's consciousness reaches out for all living and non-living entities, connecting with them and transforming his body into a magnet of foreign energy. After we do this, we enter Sage Mode and use the Senjutsu chakra we've gathered to our advantage."

Shujinko listened to Jiraiya's every word with fascination. It was strange how this man went from being as childish as Naruto to being a serious and knowledgeable shinobi. Also, he couldn't help but feel honored. While he wasn't exactly being trained, he was receiving education from one of the world's finest ninjas, a living legend in every sense of the term. The old and wise Sage was enlightening the young and inexperienced Sage. "And how did you become a Sage, Jiraiya-sama?"

For a brief moment, the Sannin didn't answer. Shujinko's question echoed inside Jiraiya's mind, remembering when a young Minato asked him the very same thing years ago. "That's a story for another time. As I was saying, learning Senjutsu comes with several attributes. In your case, the Karura Tensei temporarily increases your reflexes and your perception, as well as your eyesight. You suddenly start to notice hundreds of little details in the environment that you normally wouldn't appreciate. A common trait among Sages is the ability to perceive chakra, which further enhances your sense of awareness."

As he nodded in understanding, the golden-eyed boy thought about another thing. "What about Ninjutsu? Hokage-sama told me the Karura Tensei only boosted wind-related jutsus. My Genjutsu skills, for example, remain the same as ever, and I don't feel physically stronger or faster."

"In general, Senjutsu increases all of the user's aptitudes. In your case, however, it seems that it only affects certain aspects. If you ask me, it's a fair price to pay. You can successfully absorb and incorporate nature chakra in a matter of seconds with little effort. Maybe you don't realize it, but that skill of yours is truly priceless." Jiraiya said. He then stood up and removed the dust from his clothes, indicating Shujinko that the conversation was over. "Anyways, that's enough information for one day. I have to make sure your knucklehead of a teammate doesn't get himself killed. Remember what I said, and don't even think of telling this to anyone."

Shujinko agreed wholeheartedly. Not because of the implications that came with explaining Senjutsu to someone, but because he really liked the feeling of sharing a personal secret with Jiraiya, something that concerned Sages and Sages only. "I understand. Thanks for everything, Jiraiya-sama."

"Don't mention it, gaki. See you around." Jiraiya replied before disappearing in a cloud of smoke, leaving a thoughtful Shujinko behind.

* * *

"… _the user's consciousness reaches out for all living and non-living entities, connecting with them and transforming his body into a magnet of foreign energy…"_

Before this day, Shujinko had never thought about how complex Senjutsu was, and how privileged he was for having his Kekkei Genkai. It made him feel guilty and even unworthy.

Shujinko had a very simple view of life: You work for it, you earn it. Some people were naturally stronger or had more talent than others, but even prodigies had to, at some point, put some effort into whatever it was that they wanted. And that was exactly what troubled him. He did nothing to earn the kind of power he had.

Then again, there were lots of people who had things they didn't necessarily deserve. The Daimyo and the royal family were a perfect example. They did nothing to earn their wealth or power, they simply happened to belong to the most influential and important family of the land. Why should the son of the Daimyo, who probably had never worked before in his life, inherit pretty much all of Hi no Kuni when there were hundreds and hundreds of farmers out there who worked their land every day just to stay alive and still lived like peasants?

… But what if the son of the Daimyo had the exact same thoughts? After all, he wasn't guilty of being born in the royal family, the same way Shujinko wasn't guilty of being born in the Ozuma clan. They had no control over the circumstances they were born, and therefore, they couldn't be blamed in the slightest for having what they had.

'Besides, it's not like I have an easy path ahead of me. Maybe I don't deserve this power, but I will earn it.' Shujinko reasoned as he entered Yoi Sakana and greeted his old friend Masao, the chef and owner of the sushi bar. "Oi, Masao. How have you been?"

The old chef snorted in a friendly way. "Well, well, well. If it ain't the mighty Ozuma. Please, make yourself comfortable in my humble restaurant."

The brown-haired boy rolled his eyes at the mocking tone. "Whatever, just give me the usual order." As Masao started cutting the vegetables, Shujinko decided to make some conversation, wanting to catch up with the old chef. "So, how's business going? I haven't been here in a while."

Masao shrugged his shoulders. "Same old, same old. Although, I've seen a lot of foreigners coming in here recently. These Chunin Exams really attract people, that's for sure."

Shujinko's ears perked. "You know about the Chunin Exams?"

"Course' I do, boy! It's the only thing customers talk about nowadays. All the inns and hostels are getting crowded with folks who want to see kids fighting each other. And from what I heard, Uchiha Sasuke is the main event. I swear, that kid's becoming more popular than Hokage-sama himself."

'Just what Sasuke wants. More attention.' Shujinko thought with irony, holding back a chuckle. It was a good thing Sasuke was with Kakashi somewhere else, and not in the village. "Are you going to bet for any of the candidates?"

"Me? Bet on someone? No, this old man ain't fond of that. My uncle lost everything he had because he couldn't stop wagering. Since then, I made a promise not to spend my money in that kind of nonsense… But if I did, I'd rather open my wallet and bet on you."

"Really?" Shujinko asked before raising an eyebrow. "Is it because you know me or because I'm your favorite client?"

Masao threw his head back and laughed. "Both of 'em, my boy. Both of 'em." he said as he handed the Ozuma his food and beverage.

Shujinko spent his meal mostly in silence, answering questions every now and then and enjoying his jasmine tea. Meanwhile, Masao started cleaning the floor and checking if he had enough chopsticks for the rest of the day. After he was done eating, he paid Masao and was about to leave… but before reaching the exit, he turned around and faced the chef. "Masao, if you had the chance to decide how your life is going to be, would you change anything or would you keep it exactly the way it is?"

"… That's a strange question coming from you. Why you want to know?" Masao asked, to which Shujinko merely shrugged in response. "Well, I don't know where this is coming from, but I sure know I wouldn't want no changes in my life. I'm satisfied with the way I am and that's all there's to it."

"Why? Why not decide to become someone rich or powerful?" Shujinko asked.

"Look at me, kid. What's the first thing you think when you see this?" Masao asked back, pointing at himself.

"… a chef?"

"Aye, a chef, and a damn good one at that. But this chef has a lot of stories to tell, and not all of 'em have a pretty ending. Life's harsh alright, and it only gets harsher if you look for happiness in everything but the little things. People like me won't be remembered, you know. I don't expect the whole village to weep for me the day that I'm gone. But I don't care. You wanna know why? Because I'll die with a smile on my wrinkled face, knowing that I lived an honest and fulfilling life. So what if I'm not rich or powerful? I have my own business, a daughter who's about to give birth to a baby and a son who's following his old man's footsteps, and if that wasn't enough, I can brag about having been married to the best woman to ever live. Let me tell you, some people are so miserable that the only thing they have is money and power. You can't help but feel sorry for those folks."

The Ozuma simply stood there, not really knowing what to make of the answer he received. He wasn't expecting Masao to be so open with him, even if they knew each other for years now. It felt weird, but pleasant at the same time. "Thanks, Masao. I really appreciate it."

"Think nothing of it, gaki. Now, aren't ya' supposed to be training for the Chunin Exams? There's some tough competition out there. I don't know how asking questions like that are gonna help."

"Trust me, it helps. See you later." And with that said, the Ozuma left the sushi bar.

…

(20 minutes later)

Shujinko was making his way home, thinking about what Masao told him a couple of minutes ago. These past few days had been quite educational, to say the least. He was getting advice from so many people with different backgrounds. The Hokage introduced him to the Will of Fire, Aoba helped him with his fear of failure, Jiraiya taught him about the secrets of nature and now Masao enlightened him with the way he should live his life. Everyone, from an old sushi chef to the highest authority of the village, was helping him grow.

The feeling of being guided brought a smile to Shujinko's face. His objectives were clear and he no longer feared what the future had in store for him. In fact, he was tempted to go to the training grounds and resume his training right away, even against Aoba's instructions. 'I shouldn't get too excited. Tomorrow I'll probably be begging for another day off.' Shujinko reminded himself.

The Ozuma narrowed his eyes as he stared at a girl not too far away from him. She wore purple pants and a blue, sleeveless Chinese shirt. He was sure he had seen her before, but he couldn't remember where or when exactly. Once he saw the two hair buns on her head, Shujinko recognized the individual right away.

It was Tenten, who was buying groceries from a merchant at an out-door store. She was dressed as a civilian, although her current attire was somewhat similar to her usual outfit. Before he knew what he was doing, Shujinko approached Tenten, who was receiving the bags with the products she bought.

"Hey." Shujinko said once he was close enough to Tenten, not really knowing what else to say.

The bun-haired kunoichi turned around, her eyes widening slightly as she recognized Shujinko. "Oh, it's you. Hey, Shujinko."

An awkward silence took place as neither Shujinko nor Tenten knew what to say as they barely knew each other. Shujinko felt like an idiot for approaching Tenten without having at least one or two conversation starters prepared beforehand. A light bulb appeared on top of his head as he came up with a brilliant idea. "I-I was just walking by when I saw you. Do you need help with those bags? They look kind of heavy."

Tenten frowned as she gave Shujinko a questioning look. "I think I can carry a few bags by myself. I'm not exactly weak, you know."

Shujinko felt a knot forming inside his throat. He quickly realized his words could easily be taken the wrong way. By offering to help Tenten with her bags, he unintentionally implied that she wasn't strong enough to carry them on her own. Of course, Shujinko would never do that kind of thing on purpose. But instead of becoming a human tongue-twister of excuses and apologies, Shujinko actually managed to get a hold of himself and put up a straight face. "I don't think you're weak at all. I was just trying to be helpful."

The kunoichi stared at Shujinko for a few seconds before letting out a sigh. "I'm sorry. I've been a little tired these past few days. Sure, I could use a hand."

'That was close.' Shujinko thought in relief as he picked up two bags and followed Tenten.

Starting a conversation with Tenten proved to be a lot more difficult than what he had envisioned, and it all came down to two reasons. The first reason was that he didn't know much about Tenten. Sure, they weren't complete strangers, but they were far from being friends. If anything, they were acquaintances at best. The only thing Shujinko knew about Tenten was that she was a year older than him, was on the same team as Neji and Lee and had a knack for weapons.

The second reason was painfully simple: Other than his mother and sister, Shujinko didn't know how to talk to girls. Sakura was his teammate, so she was an exception. The brown-haired boy never felt the need to interact with his female classmates during his days in the Academy, mostly because he was too busy improving his shinobi skills and maintaining his rivalry with Sasuke.

However, this was an opportunity to make up for his lack of female interaction. Tenten was certainly different from the other girls he knew. Hinata was way too shy for her own good, Sakura was still dealing with inferiority issues and Ino, despite being good at heart, still displayed an overconfident attitude that annoyed almost everyone she met. Tenten showed none of those traits, and that was what made her so interesting to Shujinko. "Soooo, how have you been lately? I haven't seen you since the Preliminaries." Shujinko asked, hoping to find some common ground that would allow him to start a dialogue.

"There's not much to say, to be honest." Tenten replied. "I spend most of my time helping tou-san with his shop. I'm also helping Neji train for his upcoming match."

Upon hearing Neji's name, Shujinko's mouth twitched in displeasure. He still remembered Neji's cruel and condescending behavior towards Hinata and Naruto during the Preliminaries. Shujinko hoped karma would come back to bite Neji in the ass.

Tenten continued to talk. "I really feel sorry for your teammate. He has to face Neji right off the bat. I'm sure he's strong if he has managed to get this far, but there's just no chance he can beat Neji."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that. It's true that the odds are against him, but Naruto always seems to find a way to overcome anything. There's a reason why he's known as Konoha's number one unpredictable, knucklehead ninja."

"Konoha's number one unpredictable, knucklehead ninja?" Tenten repeated in disbelief. "What kind of moniker is that?"

"A very accurate one, if you ask me. At least it's better than Konoha's beautiful green wild beast. How's Lee doing, by the way?" As soon as the Ozuma finished his question, Tenten suddenly stopped walking and stared at the ground with a gloomy look on her face. "Hey, what happened? Is there something wrong?"

Tenten slowly shook her head. "Nothing, it's just… Lee is going through a rough time right now. After his fight with Gaara, the medical staff told us his injuries are too severe to treat them properly. He's making some progress, but he'll never be able to fight or even move like he used to... They say his career as a shinobi is over."

Shujinko felt as if someone had dropped a bucket of cold water over his head. He knew Lee's wounds were bad, but not to that degree. Lee, that spandex-wearing boy who excelled in Taijutsu and worked two or even three times more than anyone Shujinko had ever met, was now forced to live a life without being able to do what he lived for. "I… I don't know what to say… I'm so sorry…"

"Don't be, it's not your fault."

After getting over the initial shock, Shujinko decided to do two things: First, he was going to train like crazy and master the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu before the third exam. Second, if he ever came across Gaara again, he would teach him a lesson and, at the same time, avenge Lee in his own way. Lee once expressed his desire to fight Shujinko on equal terms because he deemed him to be a worthy opponent, and Shujinko was now determined to show everyone why.

* * *

(Tenten's house)

Shujinko and Tenten spent the rest of their time together talking about whatever they had in mind. As they spoke, the golden-eyed boy was constantly thinking about what could he ask her in order to prolong the conversation and avoid running out of topics. Much to his delight, Tenten seemed to be genuinely interested in almost everything he had to say and always came up with honest, intelligent answers. In return, Shujinko paid attention to her every word and made sure to keep track of what she said so he could have a better picture of her personality.

"Well, here we are." Tenten announced as they stopped in front of a small house located in the middle of the market district, not too far away from her father's store where Shujinko first met her. From the outside, it looked very similar to Shujinko's house. Small, but humble. "I better get inside. Tou-san doesn't like it when I'm late. Thanks for the help."

"Don't mention it." Shujinko replied, but before he handed over the bags to Tenten, he started speaking again. Only this time, his voice sounded weak and somewhat insecure. "… He-Hey, Tenten?"

"Yeah?"

"I was wondering… I know we're on different teams and everything, but if you don't mind, maybe we could hang out and talk again some other time? It's fine if you don't want to, but if you're okay with it… I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'd like to get to know you better… like a friend."

The Ozuma had no idea what was happening to him. Why was he so damn nervous? He wasn't like that with other people, so why was he acting so weird now all of a sudden? To make things even worse, his sense of insecurity made a hole inside his stomach, and very much against his will, a faint but still noticeable blush appeared on his cheeks.

Tenten seemed to be slightly taken aback, but she quickly recovered herself. "Oh… Well, sure. I don't see why not."

"Great! I-I mean, cool. I should probably go now. Kaa-san is waiting for me to-"

ZIIIIIIIP

Due to their poor quality, one of Tenten's bags was unexpectedly cut open from below, dropping the groceries stored inside. Apples, tomatoes, carrots, strawberries and just about all kinds of fruits and vegetables ended up scattered all over the ground. Shujinko's immediate reaction was to kneel down and pick up the groceries… which was exactly what Tenten did. They both tried to grab the same orange, and because Tenten got to it first, Shujinko accidentally ended up placing his hand on top of hers.

Both teens gasped in surprise as their eyes gradually traveled from their hands to their faces. Neither of them attempted to move a muscle or make a sound, almost scared of what could happen if they did. Time seemed to slow down for Shujinko as he, for the first time, truly took notice of Tenten's beautiful features. The color of her hair, followed by her chocolate eyes and slightly tan skin resulted in a captivating combination that caught Shujinko off guard.

Unaware of the rest of the world, Shujinko also noticed how soft Tenten's skin was. His hand was still on top of Tenten's, and for some reason, he wasn't thinking about taking it back. In fact, he was barely thinking at all. The only thing Shujinko was focused on was the dazzling face of the girl right in front of him.

"Hu-Hummmm…"

Tenten's voice brought Shujinko back to reality. He realized their faces were just a few inches away from one another, that he was still touching her hand and that he was still staring at her. Oh, and Tenten's cheeks were also sporting a blush.

Shujinko immediately released her hand as if he was touching a hot piece of metal, standing up in complete and total embarrassment. He started to sweat like a polar bear in the middle of a desert and his face reddened to the point of becoming a tomato. "S-S-So-Sorry about that! See you later!" was the only thing Shujinko managed to stammer before running away from the scene as fast as he could, leaving a baffled Tenten behind.

* * *

Aaaaaaand that was chapter 27.

Well, Shujinko finally meets Jiraiya. I felt these two characters needed to have a conversation, especially because Jiraiya is the only one who can teach Shujinko about Senjutsu at this point, being a Sage himself. Before you get any ideas, I want to clarify that Jiraiya will not train Shujinko in the future. However, that doesn't necessarily mean they won't interact with one another later on.

I also wanted to use Jiraiya to give a better explanation of the Karura Tensei's abilities and limitations. Please take into consideration that English is only my second language, so maybe my explanation is not as accurate as I would like it to be.

As for the end of the chapter, all I can say is that every relationship that eventually becomes romantic needs to have, in my opinion, one awkward moment at least.

Feel free to review, favorite and follow this story if you like how things are going.

Ja ne!


	28. Chapter 28

**CHAPTER 28: AN UNPLEASANT ENCOUNTER**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOF

"… Not too bad. You're getting the hang of it." Aoba commented as he stared at Shujinko's clone, which looked far better than the ones he used to create when he first began practicing the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu.

"Maybe, but it's still not enough," Shujinko replied before dispelling the clone.

The third exam was only five days away, and Shujinko was using every second he had to perfect his shadow clones. His improvement, while undeniable, was still insufficient. Even though his clones were a lot more solid and stable, they continued to be unfit for battle. In fact, they couldn't even accomplish basic tasks like picking up an object or go to a pointed location. In other words, they remained useless.

However, Shujinko no longer felt frustrated or disheartened for not being able to master the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu right away. Quite the contrary, he was happy to know that he was close to learning an incredibly difficult technique at his age and in such a short amount of time, although he would be lying to himself if he said he wasn't worried. He only had three days of training left since he wanted to use the day before the exam to rest. With his current progress, he didn't know if three days were going to be enough. After all, he wouldn't risk using the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu during his match unless he was certain he could pull it off flawlessly.

"You know, maybe this is nothing but nonsense, but you've been acting a little weird these past few days," Aoba said.

Shujinko tilted his head. "Weird? Weird how?"

"Every time you take a break after creating a shadow clone, you get really distracted, as if your head was in another place. Is there something bothering you?"

A bright blush creeped over the Ozuma's cheeks. He knew perfectly well what was going on with him: His encounter with Tenten.

The golden-eyed boy couldn't stop thinking about what happened that day. He refused to admit it, but the face of the bun-haired kunoichi had become a constant picture inside his head. He often brushed those thoughts away and kept telling himself that Kami was just playing games with him, but deep inside, he knew that wasn't true.

And of course, there was also the whole running away thing. That memory couldn't possibly be more embarrassing for the young Genin. There were so many courses of action he could've gone for instead of leaving Tenten and making an absolute idiot out of himself in the process. Anything, anything would've been better than disappearing like a moron like he did.

What was Tenten thinking about him right now? She probably wasn't interested in becoming friends with him any longer. Shujinko didn't blame her. He really gave Tenten a bad impression of himself in the end. And even if Tenten was willing to give him a chance to clear his image, Shujinko didn't know if he could summon the courage to speak to her ever again.

"It's nothing, Aoba-sensei. I mean it. Let's just get back to training." Shujinko responded, keeping his blush under control for the time being.

Aoba raised an eyebrow but decided not to press the matter. He liked Shujinko well enough, but his sole responsibility was to make sure the boy was ready for the third exam, not to become his counselor. They were ninjas, after all. Emotional bonds between teachers and students weren't exactly encouraged by other shinobis, or even approved in some cases.

Shujinko took a seat and opened a bottle of water. "I don't know what it is that I'm missing." he said after taking a sip. "I feel like I'm really close to getting it, but for some reason, I simply can't pull it of."

The Tokubetsu Jounin rubbed his chin as he tried to figure out a way to help Shujinko. By the looks of it, the boy was doing everything right. Not only Shujinko needed to learn how to create shadow clones, but also how to use them in real combat, and they were running out of time. 'Well, desperate times call for desperate measures.' Aoba thought with a crooked smile that went unnoticed. "You know what? Let's try something different."

Shujinko's ears perked. "You have an idea, Aoba-sensei?"

"One or two. Come here, we'll have a sparring match."

"A sparring match?" Shujinko repeated after blinking three times. "I don't mean no disrespect, but are you sure that's going to help me?"

"Maybe it will, maybe it won't. And besides, we haven't attended to your Taijutsu. We can't afford you to get rusty before your match, can we? Now stop complaining and get over here." Aoba said with a light, yet still authoritarian voice.

The golden-eyed boy was starting to get suspicious. It was true that he had neglected his Taijutsu training to a degree, but he seriously doubted he was rusty. And even if he was, it was because he had been too busy with the water-walking exercise and the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. If he wanted to improve and learn new abilities, he had to avoid working on the ones he already had. Still, he didn't want to antagonize his sensei or anything like that, so he simply did as told and stood in front of Aoba, maintaining a proper distance.

The two shinobis raised their fingers, performing the seal of confrontation. According to the protocol, the individual with the highest rank was supposed to signal the start of the match in case there was no proctor or judge to supervise the encounter. Shujinko closed his eyes and patiently waited…

"… Begin!"

As soon as Shujinko heard Aoba's voice, he immediately activated the Karura Tensei and jumped straight forward with his arm pulled back, fully intending to knock him out. Aoba waited until the last second before stepping to the side and grabbing Shujinko's wrist, turning his momentum against him and throwing him away. However, Shujinko was sort of expecting this to happen, and he never launched an attack without knowing what to do next. His intention was to keep a safe distance and occasionally throw a punch or kick as he tried to read Aoba's movements and fighting style.

His strategy, however, was thrown down the toilet as the Tokubetsu Jounin suddenly appeared in front of him and buried his knee deep inside Shujinko's stomach before his feet could touch the ground, leaving him breathless.

"Ooof!"

But Aoba didn't stop there. In a very 'Juuken-ish' fashion, he extended his right palm and struck Shujinko across his face. The Ozuma landed with a loud THUMP noise, and when he stood up, he felt a strange flavor inside his mouth. When he spat on the ground, he found some blood mixed with his saliva.

Shujinko was feeling a tad bit uncertain. Aoba was really taking the sparring match seriously, perhaps a little too much. And while he appreciated the fact that Aoba wasn't holding back (at least not as much as he could if he wanted to), there were also boundaries that had to be respected in a friendly sparring session, especially with the third exam coming up.

'If he wants to go all out, then so will I!' Shujinko thought as he started weaving hand signs, unwilling to lose that easily. "Fuuton: Daifuuburo no Jutsu!" he exclaimed, taking a deep breath and releasing a sharp gust of wind towards Aoba.

"Did I say Ninjutsu was allowed?" Aoba asked out loud as he dodged Shujinko's attack by jumping over it. "Don't waste your chakra, you're going to need it if you want to win."

So now he wasn't allowed to use Ninjutsu? Well, that was just fantastic. How was he supposed to get the upper hand when he couldn't rely on his greatest assets? To make things even worse, he could feel the Karura Tensei fading away. His attempt to create a shadow clone before the sparring match and his recent wind technique left him with little chakra to use.

Using his frustration as fuel, Shujinko growled and engaged Aoba in a furious Taijutsu exhibition. He needed to make the best of what he had while he still owned the advantage of the Karura Tensei. Every punch he blocked and every kick he stopped caused him to wince in pain, as there was a considerable strength gap between the two contenders.

The Ozuma soon realized there was no way he could beat Aoba in terms of speed or brute force, but maybe he could outmaneuver him for the time being. Hoping his wrist wouldn't break because of the impact, Shujinko opened his right hand and caught Aoba's incoming fist. He then immediately stepped to the left, allowing the Tokubetsu Jounin to move forward until he was facing his back.

Still holding Aoba's hand from behind, Shujinko placed himself on top of his shoulders and jumped backward, pushing the Tokubetsu Jounin away. While in mid-air, the Genin pulled out a dozen shurikens and threw them at Aoba, who instantly turned around and used a kunai to deflect the incoming weapons, showing off his impressive speed and reflexes. Soon, every shuriken was stuck on the ground, not a single scratch on Aoba's clothes.

"That was a risky thing to do, but clever nonetheless." Aoba complimented Shujinko. "A shinobi has to be able to think while engaging its enemy and expect the unexpected at all times. If not..."

Suddenly, Aoba's body became green and shaky. Shujinko watched in astonishment how his teacher started to decompose until he became nothing but a pile of leaves that the wind quickly blew away. The scene was oddly familiar, and Shujinko realized what was going on.

"Kai!" he said, performing the Ram hand sign that broke the illusion. As soon as the Genjutsu was dispelled, Shujinko felt a presence behind him. He turned around and tried to grab a kunai from his holster, but Aoba was already holding a kunai dangerously close to Shujinko's jugular.

The match was over, and Aoba was the clear winner.

Shujinko let out a tired sigh while putting his kunai back in its holster, not feeling completely disappointed by the result of the match. After all, Aoba was a Tokubetsu Jounin with way more experience and fighting prowess than him. It was never a fair fight to begin with. "I thought you said no jutsus were allowed?" Shujinko asked as he and Aoba performed the unison sign, acknowledging that the confrontation had come to an end and that they were still fellow comrades.

"Not at all. I made it very clear that no Ninjutsu was allowed. I never said anything about not using Genjutsu. There's a difference, you see."

The brown-haired boy thought about it, and in the end, he had no other choice but to agree with what his sensei said. "I suppose I forgot to look beneath the underneath, huh?" the Ozuma asked rhetorically, now back to his normal state. His low chakra reserves prevented him from maintaining the Karura Tensei any longer.

Aoba smirked. "Now that's something Kakashi would say."

"Soooo, what do we do now? I still can't figure out how to create a solid shadow clone, and I don't see how another friendly match is going to help me."

"Here's what I want you to do: Try the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu one last time."

"Wh-What?" Shujinko stuttered as he failed to understand the motives behind Aoba's request. "But sensei, I don't have much chakra left. You said I could die if I ended up using too much chakra, and we just got done fighting. Can't we wait until I'm at least a lit-"

"I know what I said." Aoba cut him off. "I wouldn't expect you to understand my reasons for asking you to do this. Is it dangerous? Yes, but facing danger is part of our lives. When I offered to teach you this jutsu, I stated that it would be an exhausting process, yet you still wanted to go through with this. I'm only asking you to keep your promise."

Shujinko stared at the ground, biting his lower lip and asking himself what should he do. It was true that he promised Aoba to master the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu before the third exam. Hell, he even promised himself the same thing. But what Aoba was asking him to do was risky, to say the very least. One mistake and he could end up in the hospital for several days… or worse.

However, Shujinko was aware his sensei wasn't stupid. Aoba would never ask him to do something that could potentially end his life just for the sake of some Chunin rank, right? There had to be a hidden motive, a logical explanation behind Aoba's petition.

Following his instincts, Shujinko nodded and crossed his fingers, hoping this wouldn't backfire on him. When he closed his eyes in deep thought, he noticed something different, and not in a bad way. Despite being tired and low on energy, he also felt… how to describe it? It was as if his chakra suddenly became much easier to control.

Taking a long, deep breath, the Ozuma gathered his remaining chakra inside his belly and waited for the right moment to use it. The same way Masao measured the precise amount of ingredients he needed to use for his dishes, Shujinko measured the precise amount of chakra he needed to use for his shadow clone. Once he knew exactly how much juice he had left, he divided his chakra into two equal portions and focused on the one he was going to employ.

The golden-eyed boy was no longer aware of his surroundings. The rest of the world seemed to be mute, for he could hear nothing but the air that went in and out of his nostrils. He even forgot about his physical weariness, reaching a level of concentration that he never knew he had access to.

Still submerged under that calm zen-zone he just discovered, Shujinko finally tapped into his chakra. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOF

…

"… Oi, Shujinko, you might want to open your eyes."

Indeed, Shujinko still had his eyes closed, as if fearing for the result. In reality, Shujinko was still in that mysterious state of mind, not fully aware of his environment. Aoba's words echoed inside his head, forcing the Ozuma to come back to the real world. He slowly opened his eyes… and what he saw left him stupefied.

An exact replica of himself was standing right in front of him, blinking several times as it stared down at its own hands with fascination.

Shujinko gasped in shock. This was not some cheap clone or a second-rate imitation. This was, quite literally, his clone, his freaking doppelganger. Kami damn, it looked just like him! Even the clone's hair was identical! For a brief moment, Shujinko honestly thought he had created a living person by accident.

"No way..."

"Congratulations. Meet your very first shadow clone." Aoba said with a broad smile. Even his glasses seemed to be shining in delight.

The brown-haired boy paid no attention to the Tokubetsu Jounin. He was completely mesmerized by the clone. He even raised his hand and started touching its face and headband, just like a toddler interacting with an older sibling for the first time.

"So cool..." Shujinko whispered to himself, ignoring the curious look his shadow clone was giving him. The Genin almost felt like a kid playing with a human-sized action figure, but he could care less about that. "Can you talk?" he eagerly asked, now messing with the clone's hair. Aoba was having a hard time holding back his laughter.

The clone blinked a couple of times as if processing Shujinko's question. "… Hey."

Shujinko let out another gasp. The clone talked back and even had his same voice!

"This is awesome!" the Ozuma exclaimed, truly overjoyed by his achievement. "Are you seeing this, Aoba-sensei?! I finally did it! I finally di..." Suddenly, Shujinko was struck by a wave of exhaustion that interrupted his celebration. His vision became blurry and obscure as his knees failed to support him. His entire body now felt unbelievably heavy. "A-A-Aoba-sensei..." he managed to mumble before his existence collapsed.

Aoba quickly reacted and grabbed Shujinko before he could hit the ground. The clone dispelled itself after the original Shujinko blacked out. The Tokubetsu Jounin sighed as he checked his student's vital signs, making sure that everything was alright before placing Shujinko over his shoulder, ready to carry him to the hospital. "Well, can't say I didn't see this coming."

* * *

…

Shujinko groaned as his vision gradually became clearer. He felt somewhat lightheaded, and his mouth was dry. When his eyesight was finally back, he stared at the ceiling for half a minute before realizing he was in a room other than his own. "What the..."

"So you finally decided to wake up, huh?" The Genin gasped as he looked the other way. Aoba was sitting next to him, reading what seemed to be a particularly thick book.

"Aoba-sensei!" Shujinko winced as he tried to get up, realizing that he was tired as hell.

"Easy, now. You're still recovering from your chakra exhaustion." Aoba said quickly.

"Chakra exhaustion? Where are we?"

"In the hospital. I have to say, you really did a number on yourself during our last training session."

"Our last training session?" Shujinko repeated, trying to recall the recent events. His eyes widened when he remembered what happened. "The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! I-"

"You did it. Before you passed out, you were able to gather the exact amount of chakra needed to create a show clone." Aoba said with a smirk, remembering how happy Shujinko got that day. "Of course, your body couldn't sustain itself much longer after that. I had to bring you here so you could recover. You've been asleep since yesterday."

"… I feel like crap." the Ozuma admitted after a while. His dizziness was replaced with hunger, with a desire to eat the first thing he could find. After all, he had yet to eat since… "Wait a second, what do you mean I've been asleep since yesterday?"

Aoba blinked in confusion. "Exactly that. Why are you so surprised?"

"One day has passed?! That's it, I'm getting out of here!" Shujinko nearly shouted, struggling to get out of bed. "The third exam is only days away, I can't waste any more time!"

"You're not going to make things better by hurting yourself." Aoba replied while placing a hand on his student's shoulder, stopping him from standing up. "And besides, just look at you. You're in no condition to train. I'd be surprised if you managed to walk your way out of this place on your own."

Shujinko's mouth twitched in displeasure. As much as he hated to admit it, his sensei had a point. Right now, he was weak and fragile, like an old man after hours of working in the rice fields. Attempting to get on with his training would do him no good, and he needed to be in the best shape possible for his fight against Kankuro. Letting out a sight, Shujinko got back in his bead. "What about my parents? Do they know I'm here?"

The Tokubetsu Jounin shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, about that, I told them we went camping as a part of our training. I didn't want them to be worried over a night at the hospital. Trust me, I know how concerned civilian parents can get."

Shujinko agreed wholeheartedly. While he didn't like the idea of lying to his parents, it was certainly the best option. There was no need for them to know about his training or the hardships that came with it, at least for the moment. He wanted to be away from his family so he could focus on the matter at hand.

Looking down at his body, he realized he wasn't wearing the same clothes from yesterday. Instead, he was wearing light blue pajamas, a very common outfit among patients. Once again, Shujinko felt a sense of distaste. While he wasn't particularly embarrassed of his body, he really didn't like the idea of other people removing his clothes while being unconscious, even if they belonged to the medical staff.

In that moment, Shujinko recalled another thing. "Aoba-sensei, why did you ask me to do the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu right after our sparring match? I'm not questioning your methods or anything, but I don't understand them."

"I was wondering when were you going to ask that," Aoba said with a thoughtful expression as he closed the book he was reading. "Very well, I don't see why I shouldn't explain it to you. Do you remember what was the objective of the water-walking exercise?"

"To improve my chakra control," Shujinko responded.

"Exactly. It's not only a very helpful skill to have, but it also does wonders for your chakra control. Now, when we started working on the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, you had trouble gathering the exact amount of chakra, and eventually, I realized why. Whenever you attempted to create a shadow clone, you started with all or most of your chakra reserves, and that's where the problem was. As I said before, the Kage Bunshin requires you to split your chakra evenly. Now tell me, who has better chances of effectively controlling chakra? Someone with big reserves or small reserves?"

The Ozuma remembered the time when Sakura mastered the tree-climbing exercise with little to no effort. "Someone with small reserves, right?"

"Correct. So, instead of waiting for your chakra to return, I took my chances and asked you to perform the Kage Bunshin right after our sparring match, knowing that you were low on chakra. You understand where I'm going? Because you had little energy, it was easier for you to control it. It's simple logic."

"But that means I can only create shadow clones when I'm running low on chakra," Shujinko said with a raised eyebrow. "What's the point of being able to make them if I'll just faint shortly afterward?"

"Hey, nobody said it was going to be easy. If you ask me, you're not ready to use them in open battle, at least not for now. Things don't always go as planned, but it's not the end of the world, right? You can still practice this jutsu once the third exam is finished, and now that you're familiar with this technique, it'll come easier than before. Keep your head up and don't feel bad about it, alright?"

"… I'll try." Shujinko muttered, feeling somewhat disappointed. He was really hoping to use the Kage Bunshin against Kankuro and impress the Hokage, along with the other proctors who were going to evaluate the candidates. His chances of becoming a Chunin were growing thinner, as well as his chances of defeating the puppet master.

"Datta boy. I'm afraid I have to leave now. I need to take care of some business. Here, take this." Aoba handed Shujinko the book he was previously reading. "You should definitely give it a read. It has information on puppet masters, information that you could use to devise a strategy for your first match. Good luck." Instead of using the door like any other person, Aoba imitated Kakashi and left the room using the window, giving Shujinko a thumbs-up as a way of saying goodbye.

Shujinko threw his head back, staring at the ceiling. One thing he discovered was that he hated waiting for a fight he knew was close. His anxiety was starting to bubble up inside of him, and sometimes he wished he could just meet with Kankuro in a secluded place and get everything over with. The calm before the storm seemed to be more exasperating than the storm itself.

Of course, these were nothing but random thoughts that quickly faded away. He had the chance to know his opponent and his abilities beforehand, something that rarely ever happened in the real world. Not only that, but he was also a local, meaning that he had the hypothetical favor of the crowd and of the judges, at least to a degree. One outstanding performance could earn him the Chunin rank, which was hard to get, but certainly not unobtainable.

Speaking of which, who else from Konoha was a serious candidate to become a Chunin? Naruto was hardly a contender, in his level-headed opinion. It had nothing to do with his skills (especially now that he got himself a Kami-damned Sannin to teach him), but rather his personality. He had many traits that made him special, but at the same time, he lacked qualities such as patience and awareness and suffered from a rather short temperament at times.

Sasuke had more Chunin material, that was for sure. He was observant, collected and smart. But Sasuke didn't really seem to desire the status. In fact, he admitted that becoming a Chunin meant less than nothing to him, he only wanted to test his strength against the strongest competitors around. What was more, a Chunin had to be able to work effectively with a team, and Sasuke was very independent in pretty much every aspect.

Shino was another person who could step up and obtain the rank. Silent, analytical (perhaps too much for his own good), competent in many fields, and well-rounded. Still, Shujinko had some doubts whether if the heir of the Aburame clan had what it takes to become a Chunin. Only time would tell.

The candidate who would most likely get the promotion was Neji. Moral values aside, he was exactly the kind of guy Shujinko would like to have him watching his back during a mission. Shujinko wasn't stupid. While he despised Neji's arrogant and uncaring attitude, he also recognized his skills and his potential. If Neji displayed such talent at the age of thirteen, how strong would he become in five years?

Shikamaru, while smarter than almost everyone Shujinko had ever met, was also the laziest person in all of the village, maybe even more than Kakashi himself. He always tried to avoid responsibilities and only took action if there was no other choice on the table. The brown-haired Genin was willing to bet that Shikamaru would refuse the rank of Chunin just so he could spend more time watching clouds and doing nothing, away from the pressures and the obligations that came along with the position.

And what about himself? Was he worthy of being a Chunin? Shujinko liked to think he was. He, alongside his teammates, had experienced lots of things most Genins his age would never dream of. He protected Tazuna from an evil businessman who terrorized the country, held his own against the likes of Zabuza, Haku, and even Orochimaru, and defeated Kabuto in open combat using no one's help. Those were important achievements, right?

But at the same time, there were other things that had to be taken into consideration. He didn't have Naruto's chakra. He didn't have Sasuke's Sharingan. He didn't have Shino's bugs. He didn't have Neji's Taijutsu. He didn't have Shikamaru's intelligence. So what about him?

Well, he did have the Karura Tensei, a Kekkei Genkai that very few people were aware of. And he also knew how to adapt to the circumstances he faced. When he arrived at the village after the construction of Tazuna's bridge, Kakashi told him he had qualities of a leader, and those qualities were the ones expected from a Chunin.

In the end, Shujinko decided not to worry about whether if he was Chunin material or not. That was for the Hokage and the proctors to say. The only thing he could do was to make a convincing performance and hope for their approval. If he failed to impress them… Well, he could always wait for the next Chunin Exams, but the idea of becoming a Chunin right away was extremely tempting, to say the least.

The first and most obvious benefit of being a Chunin was the eligibility for C-ranks and B-ranks, but there were other perks as well. The paycheck was better, the people of the village (both civilians and shinobis) treated you with more respect and seriousness, and that green flak jacket that Chunins wore looked absolutely dope.

'I bet I could impress Tenten if I wore that vest.' Shujinko thought absentmindedly before shaking his head. 'What am I doing? I can't be thinking about that, not when I have to fight Kankuro in just a few days! I haven't even elaborated on a strategy, for crying out loud! You better stop wasting your time and start reading, you baka!' he chastised himself as he opened the book Aoba brought him, determined to figure out a way to beat Kankuro.

'… But even so, I bet Tenten would be impressed.'

* * *

Shujinko spent the rest of his days in the hospital, learning as much as he could about puppet masters and their fighting tactics. The book contained a lot of information he didn't really need, like the history of the first puppet masters and the evolution of puppets as war tools. However, the book also mentioned interesting facts here and there, but he didn't have enough time to read all of them.

Kugutsujutsu, also known as the Art of the Puppet Master, was a unique fighting style that allowed the puppeteer to manipulate human-size marionettes with the use of chakra threads. These chakra threads were connected to the puppet's joints to control their movements. The user required a considerable amount of finger coordination and dexterity in order to effectively utilize the puppet.

The more he read, the more Shujinko began to understand his opponent. These foreigners sure used uncommon weapons. Kankuro used a puppet, Temari used a fan, and Gaara used sand. But what were their disadvantages? What weaknesses did they have? What could he do to turn Kankuro's weapon against him?

It took him a while to figure it out. Kankuro controlled Karazu through the use of chakra threads, right? They served as the connection between the puppet and the puppeteer. So, if these chakra threads were to be severed, then Kankuro wouldn't be able to use his puppet. Karazu would become nothing but a useless, ugly, ineffective weapon.

That was what he needed to do. He had to cut the chakra threads.

Of course, it was always easier said than done. Some puppeteers used multiple threads while others used only one. Also, he had no idea how durable these threads truly were. Could they even be severed in the first place? And if they were, did he needed to use a simple kunai or a Fuuma Shuriken? And if he wanted to cut the puppet's chakra threads (supposing that it was possible), how was he supposed to do that without getting caught by Kankuro or his puppet?

This was all speculation. He was making his strategy according to the only source of information he had. He hated not having enough data, but what else could he do?

Well, one of the things Aoba taught him was to avoid stressing over things he had no immediate control of. While it was always helpful to have a solid plan thought beforehand, a ninja also had to make smart decisions in the middle of a fight, just like Shikamaru did when he fought Kin. It was that kind of intelligence that Konohagakure, and every other shinobi village for that matter, expected from their Chunins.

Shujinko came to the conclusion that, until he faced Kankuro and saw what was he all about, none of the strategies he had in store were of real value. He also realized that, unfortunately, he simply couldn't concentrate on his fight while keeping in mind hundreds of possible scenarios that could happen. His brain didn't have such capacity, after all.

'In any case, I should be heading home now. There's no way I'm gonna spend my last day here.' Shujinko thought as he removed his pajamas. The hospital was incredibly boring, and while some nurses were relatively kind, most of them were way too strict and grumpy for their own good. Once he was wearing his brown pants, his white t-shirt and his shinobi sandals, Shujinko stored the book inside his backpack and left the room.

When he reached the third floor, Shujinko was greeted by a rare sight these days. It was none other than Shikamaru, who was walking through the hallway holding a basket of fruits. "Shikamaru? Is that you?"

Shikamaru turned around and raised a lazy eyebrow. "I wasn't expecting to see you here. How troublesome." True to his nature, the heir of the Nara clan didn't bother to ask him what was he doing in the hospital. It was none of his business.

The Ozuma rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, it's good to see you too. So, what are you doing here?"

"Choji had a bit of an accident last night. He ate too much barbecue and ended up with a huge stomach ache. It's a drag, but someone has to make sure he's doing well. Ino is busy with her shop and Asuma-sensei is nowhere to be seen, so I had no other choice but to do it myself."

"Really?" Shujinko asked, feeling honestly surprised. It wasn't very often that Shikamaru actually volunteered to do something without being told to do it first. Perhaps he wasn't as lazy as Shujinko thought he was. "Well, since I'm here, I might as well join you. I haven't seen Choji in a long time."

Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders. "Meh, do whatever you want. It's not like I care what yo-"

"-GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

Shikamaru was roughly interrupted by a screeching Naruto, who came out of a room nearby while wearing nothing but a pair of underwear and a shirt, holding his pants with one hand. The idiot was in such a hurry that he attempted to put on his pants in the middle of his race, but ended up tripping and falling head first to the floor, making a loud SMACK noise. All of this happened right in front of the Nara and the Ozuma.

…

"… Troublesome blond." Shikamaru said with a sigh. He and Shujinko had a huge sweat drop going down their heads.

Naruto slowly sat down, furiously rubbing his head. It was only when he opened his eyes that he realized his two friends were staring at him, not really knowing what to expect. "Shikamaru? Shujinko? What are you two doing here?"

"We can ask you the same thing," Shujinko replied. "Do you mind telling us why you were going bananas just a few seconds ago?"

"Are you kidding me!? The final exam is tomorrow and I've been sleeping for three days straight! I can't waste any more time!"

"Geez, would it kill you to keep your voice down? So troublesome." the Nara complained, checking if his eardrums were still working after hearing Naruto's outburst. "Anyways, we were about to visit Choji and give him some food. You can tag along if you want to, I don't really care."

The Uzumaki was about to refuse, but his growling stomach told him otherwise. He was starving after spending three days sleeping due to chakra exhaustion, and while he would much rather have some of his beloved ramen, the basket full of good-looking fruits was also very tempting. A mischievous grin appeared on his face as he started giggling. "Hey, how about we visit Choji and start eating the food right in front of him? That will definitely drive him mad, believe it!"

Shikamaru's eyes widened slightly. "You want to eat all of this in front of Choji? Man, that's cruel… I like it." he finished with an unusual smirk. Shujinko wasn't very fond of pranks himself but decided to follow them. After eating hospital food for three days, he didn't want to miss the chance of eating real food.

Once Naruto managed to control his giggles (and once his pants were on), he clapped his hands together with enthusiasm. "Okay, this is how we're gonna do it: Shikamaru goes in first, he talks a little with Choji, and just when you're about to offer him the food, I and Shujinko come in and..."

Naruto's excitement died down. Suddenly, the atmosphere became cold and full of tension, almost suffocating. Shujinko felt as if the Shinigami itself made an appearance as a chilling sensation went down his spine for no apparent reason. He looked at Naruto and Shikamaru, who were just as confused and shocked as he was, but none of them knew what was going on.

The sound of footsteps caused the three boys to turn their heads around, looking at the end of the hallway where the stairs were located. Shujinko held his breath as he waited for the source of the crushing silence to reveal itself, with Naruto and Shikamaru doing the same. 'This killing intent… I can barely stand it. What's going on?'

The answer came in the shape of one person, one that Shujinko hoped he would never have to see after the Chunin Exams ever again. It was Gaara, who despite looking relatively normal, gave off a sense of dread and unpleasantness that was simply repugnant. The encounter lasted no longer than a couple of seconds. In fact, Gaara didn't seem to notice the three Genins at the back of the corridor as he started walking upstairs to the fourth floor.

Once the boy from Sunagakure was out of sight, Shujinko and the two other Genins were able to breathe a little bit easier. Naruto was the first to break the silence. "What the hell is that guy even doing here?"

Shujinko couldn't find an explanation. The situation in itself made no sense. Clearly, he wasn't here to wish someone a speedy recovery, not even to either one of his siblings (whom, as far as Shujinko was concerned, weren't here anyway). At the same time, it was highly unlikely that Gaara was here in need of medical attention. After all, the guy was practically untouchable. So what were the motives behind Gaara's sudden appearance?

The Nara thought exactly the same thing. It was true that Shikamaru was profoundly lazy, but he wasn't unobservant, and he most certainly wasn't stupid. He knew Gaara was up to no good. There was no way in hell someone as twisted and violent as him was here with noble intentions. No, if Gaara was here, it was because he had unfinished business regarding something… or someone. "I have a bad feeling about this," Shikamaru said as he narrowed his eyes. "It's a drag, but I think we should follow him and figure out what he's planning to do."

Naruto and Shujinko wordlessly agreed with Shikamaru, who left the fruit basket on the floor before taking the lead. The group of three quickly climbed up the stairs, guided by their instincts and Shujinko's Karura Tensei, which allowed him to recognize Gaara's chakra signature. Once they reached the fifth floor, Shujinko spotted an open door in the middle of the hallway.

"I think he's in there!" Shujinko whispered out loud. Gaara's chakra became more unstable, and despite all of this, the Ozuma recognized another person's chakra. It was faint, but it was still there. "He's not alone. Come on, we have to do something!"

…

* * *

Gaara's breathing became more and more accelerated as he stared at the face of an unconscious Lee, who was peacefully sleeping in his hospital bed, completely unaware of the evil presence that was standing next to him.

Ever since the Preliminaries, Gaara couldn't make sense of what he witnessed. Not only did this boy managed to hurt him like no one else before (in terms of physical pain, that is), but his sensei did something even more baffling: He risked his life to protect someone other than himself, and he did it because the boy was 'special' to him.

And Gaara simply failed to understand it. He failed to understand why someone would do such a thing. He failed to understand how Lee was special to someone else. In a world where everybody had to look after themselves, the act of risking your life for the sake of others was just absurd, incomprehensible.

Why? Because it was against everything Gaara knew. It contradicted the rules of life, the rules of survival. He was meant to kill those who stood in his path, and Gai's intervention prevented him from satisfying his lust… no, his need for blood. His inner demons were screaming at him, demanding the death of the one who doubted his existence.

Lee's sensei wasn't here to save his student. No one could stop him now. He slowly removed the cork out of his gourd, and soon enough, there was sand all over the place. That sand started to cover half of Lee's body, who remained asleep and oblivious to the fact that he was about to get killed by the Ichibi Jinchuriki.

'Now die, you...'

"Stop it right there!"

Lee's execution was, once again, interrupted. Moments before making the move that would've destroyed the spandex-wearing Genin, three individuals entered the room, distracting him. One of them was making the Rat hand-sign, and his shadow had reached his. When Gaara tried to confront them, he found himself unable to move his body and his sand, coming to the realization that he was paralyzed.

"You better start explaining yourself, damn it!" the boy with the blond hair exclaimed, pointing his finger at him in a threatening way. His name was Uzumaki Naruto, Gaara recalled. "What were you trying to do to Bushy Brows!?"

Gaara's facial expression remained unaffected. "I was about to kill him."

Shujinko, who was also facing Gaara in a combative stance, gulped. He wasn't shocked by Gaara's words, but by how normal and sincere they came out. How could he say such a thing without showing any signs of emotion at all? Was killing really that simple for Gaara? "Why do you want to kill Lee? You already beat him once. Do you have a personal grudge against him or what?"

"I have no grudges against him. I want to kill him simply because I want to kill him."

"You think we're just gonna stand here and do nothing while you try to kill our friend? Man, you must be insane." Shikamaru said, making sure that Gaara wouldn't move at all. Right now, his Kagemane no Jutsu was the only thing keeping them relatively safe, but it wasn't going to last forever.

"If you refuse to get out of my way, I will kill all four of you."

"Oh yeah!? I'd like to see you try!" Naruto challenged, cracking his knuckles.

"Not now, Naruto." Shujinko snapped unintentionally. He was trying his hardest to come up with a plan to get Lee away from Gaara, and at the same time, save everyone's skin. But how? He knew the Kagemane no Jutsu had a time limit. After that time limit, Gaara would be free again and he would definitely try to kill them. To abandon Shikamaru while he was still controlling Gaara wasn't an option. If he ran away searching for help, there was the risk of taking too much time, and time was a luxury he couldn't afford right now.

Against all odds, Shikamaru decided to test their luck and bluff their way out. "Listen here, pal. You should get out of here while you still can. It's the three of us against you, and you have no idea what we can do as a team. Besides, we're not alone. People already know where we are, and they should be arriving here any minute now. If you follow my advice and leave peacefully, there won't be no need to-"

"This is my final warning." Gaara interrupted him. "Get out of my sight, or I will kill you as well."

Shikamaru paled visibly. 'Well, I can't say I didn't see that coming.'

The Uzumaki snorted in a mocking manner. "Listen to yourself, acting all tough and stuff. There's no way I'm gonna lose to a nutcase like you, especially if that nutcase happens to threaten my friends. You're nothing but a coward hiding behind a bunch of sand, that's all!" And to finish his statement, Naruto gave Gaara a challenging look and his trademark grin. "You can keep talking like a demon for all I care, but I have a real demon inside of me!"

The brown-haired boy was lost for words. He understood that last sentence all too well. Unlike Shikamaru, who was unaware of Naruto's condition, Shujinko knew exactly what kind of demon the Uzumaki was referring to. What he didn't expect, however, was Naruto's willingness to acknowledge the fact that he had the Kyuubi no Kitsune sealed inside of him. The whiskered boy knew who he was, and that made him stronger.

"A demon, you say?" For the first time, something seemed to catch Gaara's attention. He closed his eyes for a minute, and when he opened them again, he focused his gaze solely on Naruto. "… My demon is just as real as yours."

The answer felt like a slap in the face, especially for Naruto. Shikamaru, who had no idea where this conversation was heading to, was the only one able to talk back. "What are you talking about? What do you mean by demon?"

"My childhood is not what most would consider a happy one. In order to become the strongest weapon of my village, my father used his Ninjutsu on me while I was still inside my mother's womb, infusing my soul with a sand spirit. Shortly after I was born, my mother died. I am the responsible for the death of the very woman who gave birth to me, and it was only fitting. After all, I was born a monster."

"The people in my village heard stories about how the son of the Kazekage was the terrifying sand spirit Shukaku disguised as a human. I grew up receiving nothing but hate and despise from others. Not even my siblings thought of me as their brother, but as the monster who took their mother away from them. Years passed, and when I was six years-old, it finally happened..."

"What happened?" Shujinko asked, not sure if he wanted to know the answer.

The evil smile on Gaara's face was enough to make Shujinko's skin crawl. "My father decided I was too dangerous to be kept alive… and started sending assassins after me. Day and night, I would find myself covered in the blood of others, not knowing what had I done to deserve all of this. Even my uncle Yashamaru, the only person in the village whom I trusted and cared for, tried to kill me for being his sister's murderer. Instead of becoming the protector of the village that I was meant to be, I became a symbol of terror and suffering. I lacked a purpose, and not having a purpose is the same as being dead."

Shujinko and Shikamaru were shocked by Gaara's tale, but Naruto was another story. His body was trembling and his palms were sweaty. He could feel a hole the size of his fist inside his stomach. 'This guy… he's no different from what I was. I didn't have friends or a family to look after me, and the villagers used to treat me like I was trash. He knows exactly what it feels to be alone and confused. If I hadn't met people like Iruka-sensei and Hokage-jiji, maybe… maybe I would've ended up all messed up like he is. We're so different, but at the same time, we're so similar.'

"Eventually, the answer came to me. My purpose in life is the killing of others. My loneliness is nothing but the natural consequence of the path I have to walk. I live solely for myself and love none other than myself. The same way my existence started with the death of my mother, killing other people is how my existence sustains itself. That is why, as long as there are individuals breathing in this big, beautiful and crowded world, I shall never cease to exist."

'That's it. This dude is absolutely insane.' Shujinko thought, wondering how a boy so young could come up with such a twisted and perverted ideology. At this point, someone like Gaara was beyond redemption.

Naruto, who was no stranger to loneliness and misery, was beginning to understand the Ichibi Jinchuriki more and more. 'No one tried to help him. I was alone too, but I found people willing to give me a hand. He had to do everything on his own, and this is how he came to be? To kill others for no reason… No! That can't be a good reason for living! I became strong because I want to protect those who are precious to me, not the other way around...'

'… But he's also strong, probably stronger than I am.' For the first time since his encounter with the Demon Brothers, Naruto was beginning to panic. He was confused and doubtful, but most of all, he was scared of the person in front of him. 'He never cared for anyone. Is that what made him so powerful? I don't know what to do. I… I don't know if I can beat this guy!'

And just to make things better, Shikamaru's jutsu ran out of time. The shadow that kept Gaara from moving kept getting thinner and thinner until it faded away. The sand on the floor accumulated itself, creating a dense wall around Gaara, who spoke again. "You three have lived long enough. It is time for you to die."

"Naruto, get a hold of yourself!" the Ozuma shouted as the sand slowly moved towards them. But Naruto wasn't reacting. He was completely petrified.

"Oh man, what a drag!" Shikamaru yelled, unable to perform the Kagemane no Jutsu again. They were doomed.

"Your deaths will once more reaffirm my existence," Gaara whispered. "Now..."

"That is enough. Stop what you are doing right now."

Everything happened so fast. One second Shujinko was about to get hit by Gaara's sand, and the next thing he knew, he was standing behind Gai. He had no idea where the man came from or how he managed to find them. It took him a while to realize what was going on.

Gaara's reaction was baffling. He placed both hands on his temples and started grunting in pain, as if he was suffering a mental breakdown. Shujinko remembered Gaara doing the same thing after attempting to kill Lee during the Preliminaries when Gai intervened on behalf of his student. It didn't make sense back then, and it certainly didn't make sense now.

"Your actions are most unyouthful, young man. You will have to wait until tomorrow if you are so desperate to face someone. Leave the hospital this very moment, or I will be obligated to report you to Hokage-sama."

At first, Shujinko thought Gaara was going to attack Maito Gai as well, but thankfully that didn't happen. The Ichibi Jinchuriki eventually settled down and started walking towards the exit door as soon as the sand was back inside his gourd.

However, Gaara had one last message before leaving the room. "It makes no difference. I swear one day I will kill all of you. Just you wait."

* * *

Aaaaaand that was chapter 28.

I want to apologize if some parts are a little rushed or not as detailed as they could be. I hate it when I have to upload a chapter that contains lots of dialogues and little action, but once again, it's something that has to be done. Some of you may not like it, and while I completely understand your reasons, don't expect me to change my writing style. This story will have both entertaining and boring chapters, deal with it.

On the bright side, the wait is finally over. The third exam will take place in the next update. I expect to make two or three chapters before I can begin working on the invasion, which is something I really want to do. If you see any grammar mistakes, please let me know and I'll fix them as soon as I can. Feel free to make suggestions.

Review, Follow & Favorite if you want.

Ja ne!


	29. Chapter 29 (part 1)

**CHAPTER 29: THE THIRD EXAM (PART 1)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

After a month of anticipation and preparations, the big day was finally here. The third exam was minutes away from starting and people, both locals and foreigners, were fighting just to get a decent seat. Merchants were taking advantage of the occasion and brought a number of products with them, such as food, drinks, fans, etc.

Of course, there was one business that took the cake. Outside of the Arena were several stands in which people could bet on their favorite candidate. Some adults were handing out fliers with the information of every Genin that was going to participate in the third exam, as well as the official battle fixture presented by the Hokage administration.

The match between Sasuke and Gaara was, without a doubt, the main attraction. The name of the Uchiha was coming out of everyone's mouth, and the people in charge of the wagers sure capitalized on that. Some of them even started spreading rumors about Sasuke, like how his abilities rivaled those of a veteran Jounin and how the only reason he was still a Genin was because the Hokage didn't want to risk losing the last member of the Uchiha clan by promoting him. They had no idea what they were talking about, and as long as they were making money, they didn't have a problem with it.

Was Shujinko aware of what was happening outside? No, he wasn't. Right now, he was standing alongside the rest of the competitors as thousands of spectators were shouting and chanting at them. Shujinko had never seen such a large crowd before. He felt weird and out of his comfort zone as he wasn't used to this kind of scene.

The golden-eyed boy noticed there were two candidates missing: Dosu and Sasuke. He could care less about Dosu, but what about Sasuke? His fight with Gaara was the first in the fixture, he couldn't afford to be late! Was he pulling a Kakashi or something?

Naruto, who was standing next to his teammate, gently tapped Shujinko's ribs with his elbow. "Ne, have you seen Sasuke? His fight is about to start."

"I have no idea where he is. What is he thinking? Unless he shows up immediately, his match with Gaara will be canceled and he'll be out of the tournament."

"Keep it quiet back there." said the proctor that was going to supervise the third exam. This man had long, brown hair and wore his forehead protector like a bandanna. He was holding a senbon with his mouth, for some reason. His name was Shiranui Genma, the Tokubetsu Jounin who was replacing Hayate. "Stand straight and present yourself proudly to the spectators. You guys are the protagonists of this show, after all."

Meanwhile, the highest authority of the village was watching everything from his seat in the tallest tower of the Arena. Hiruzen was aware of the delicate situation. His bodyguard Raido had recently informed him that the ANBU squad were unable to find Sasuke despite their efforts, and they had to accept the possibility that Orochimaru was behind all of this. The only thing left to do was to wait patiently, hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.

In that moment, the Kazekage made his appearance. He was accompanied by two other bodyguards who wore traveling clothes. For some reason, the Kazekage was covering his face. Only his eyes were visible, as he was also using the traditional Kage hat. "Greetings, Kazekage-dono." said the Hokage. "We are honored to have you as our special guest. You must weary after traveling all the way from Sunagakure."

"Not at all. The journey was quite peaceful." the Kazekage responded while taking a seat next to him. His voice was strangely softer than usual, almost smooth. "I must say, I was rather surprised when I received your message. I was under the impression that Konohagakure had already chosen a new Hokage by now. Haven't you considered retiring for the sake of your village? I imagine your age must make it hard for you to maintain your duties."

The Sarutobi laughed, seemingly unaffected by the disrespectful statement. "You have nothing to worry about, Kazekage-dono. I am perfectly capable of leading my village despite my age. Now, if you excuse me, I have an event to inaugurate."

The Kazekage nodded. "By all means, please do."

After clearing his throat, Hiruzen stood up and began his speech as the crowd waited in silence. "Welcome to you all. We are gathered here to witness the final trial of the Chunin Exams, and in the name of our village, I would like to thank you for attendance. The purpose of this event is to determinate which of the present candidates are worthy of becoming a Chunin. We heavily advise you to remain in the Arena until the matches are over, otherwise, you may be unable to enter a second time. Without further delay, let us begin. I, Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, hereby declare the start of the third exam. The participants may now be announced."

* * *

"Now, before we begin, I want you to look at the fixture one more time in order to clear any doubts that you might have," Genma said as he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. The Genins took a step closer to have a better look.

Shujinko was about to dismiss the piece of paper, but then, something caught his attention. 'Wait a minute, what the...'

"So, let's see who we have fir-"

"Proctor, wait!" Shujinko exclaimed. "There's something wrong with the fixtures. I'm supposed to fight Kankuro, not… Iruka-sensei? He's not even participating! I mean, he's already a Chunin!"

Genma let out a frustrated sigh. "Oh, that's right. I forgot to mention something important. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we were forced to change some of the matches. Kinuta Dosu is no longer participating in the Chunin Exams, and in order to avoid starting the tournament with an uneven number of candidates, we replaced the missing candidate with Umino Iruka. Which one of you is Aburame Shino?" Shino raised his hand quietly. "Very well. From now on, your match will be against Sabakuu no Kankuro. As for you, Shujinko, you'll have to test your abilities against Iruka."

"But that's not fair! All of this time, I trained specifically to beat Kankuro, not Iruka-sensei. Why do I have to face a Chunin when no one else has to?"

"We're here to judge your performance, not Iruka's. In the real world, you're not always going to fight people of your level. You'll be forced to go against enemies who are much stronger and experienced than you, and that can happen even during a C-rank mission. A Chunin must be able to handle a situation in which the unexpected has occurred. If you can't do that, then you might as well throw the towel and quit right now. What's your decision?"

Shujinko had to bite his tongue to prevent himself from saying something he would later regret. He couldn't believe how unlucky he was. It was already bad enough that he was supposed to fight one of the Sand Siblings, but now he had to fight against Iruka? Against an actual Chunin?

He wanted to be angry, and he was to a degree, but he was also relieved. Despite being strict, Iruka was a kind and friendly teacher who wanted nothing but the best for his students. The Ozuma couldn't imagine Iruka using brute force against someone he used to teach, or against a fellow comrade for that matter. Kankuro, on the other hand, shared no ties or bonds with him. They were ninjas from different villages, villages that weren't exactly hardcore allies.

Besides, he would bear no shame if he lost. No one would think less of him or undermine his abilities for losing against a Chunin. If anything, he would earn the respect of many, including Iruka himself. Knowing all of this, the golden-eyed boy made up his mind.

"I'm staying."

"That's what I like to hear," Genma said while smirking. "This test will have the same rules as the Preliminaries. In other words, there are no rules. The match ends when one of the participants dies, admits defeat, or is unable to continue. That being said, I do have the authority to stop the match if I decide to intervene, regardless of your wishes. The first round was supposed to be between Uchiha Sasuke and Sabakuu no Gaara, but given that the fixture has been altered, we'll start with Hyuuga Neji and Uzumaki Naruto. The rest of you can go to the designated area where you can wait for your turn."

* * *

Do you have any last words before we begin?" Neji asked, extending his palm and taking the traditional Juuken stance.

"I don't have anything to say to you," Naruto growled. "You already heard me before. I swore to Hinata that I was going to win, and I'm not going back on my word anytime soon."

Neji couldn't help but smirk at the boy's foolishness. It was mildly amusing how someone so naive had survived this long. "Hinata-sama also thought she had a chance to win, and we all know how that turned out. I cannot wait to see the look on your face once you realize that you are nothing but a failure, a failure who refuses to accept his place in the world."

"And I can't wait to see the look on your face once this failure beats the crap out of you! Are you gonna stand there all day or are we going to fight?"

"I see you are eager to meet your fate. Fine then, I will make this quick."

"Are you two ready?" Genma asked as he received confirmation from both fighters. "In that case… Begin!"

Match number one: Naruto vs Neji

Naruto acted first, throwing a bunch of kunais at Neji, who effortlessly dodged all of them. The Uzumaki took advantage of this 'distraction' and tried to attack Neji in straightforward hand-to-hand combat, completely ignoring the fact that he was putting himself at great risk. Engaging Neji in a Taijutsu match was simply a terrible idea.

Fortunately, Neji wasn't taking him seriously and merely deflected Naruto's punches as if they were nothing. Shujinko, who was watching everything from the waiting area, was anxiously rubbing his hands in desperation. 'What are you doing? Don't stay close to him, that's exactly what he wants you to do!'

Eventually, Neji decided to answer. He raised two fingers together and aimed them at one of Naruto's tenketsu. The Kyuubi Jinchuriki had barely enough time to jump back as Neji's fingers made contact with his shoulder.

Naruto gritted his teeth in pain as he stared at his right shoulder where Neji's fingers touched him. It was like having an invisible kunai cutting his skin and flesh over and over again. He could still move his arm, but it definitely didn't feel normal or comfortable.

"I missed," Neji stated. His Byakugan gave him access to the tenketsu located in Naruto's chakra system, and while he succeeded in hurting his opponent, Naruto's chakra points were still working. "Had you not reacted the way you did, your arm would be useless right now."

And Naruto knew that very well. He saw what happened to Hinata during her fight with her cousin, It didn't take a genius to figure out Neji had the high ground in terms of Taijutsu, and he needed his two arms in order to fight back. "Heh, that was a lucky shot," Naruto said with a forced smirk. "You didn't really think I was serious, right? I was just checking you out, that's all. Now that the warm-up is over, I can finally fight for real. Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Five clones came into existence, all of them ready to attack. Shujinko sighed in relief. 'That's what I'm talking about. Neji can't touch Naruto if he's too busy handling clone after clone. If Naruto keeps creating clones to fight for him while maintaining a safe distance, Neji will eventually grow tired.'

That strategy made sense. After all, no one could match Naruto's insane stamina. The Hyuuga genius may have a lot of advantages against the Uzumaki, but the ability to create shadow clones in mass numbers was certainly not one of them. However, if Naruto managed to get hit by Neji's Juuken, he was done for.

The five clones attacked Neji while the real Naruto stayed behind. The clones surrounded the Hyuuga and attacked all at once. Most of the civilian spectators thought that Neji would have trouble dealing with five adversaries at once, but they were greatly mistaken. Neji dispelled the clones one by one, hitting specific chakra points in the process.

Hinata, who was watching the fight from the stands with Kiba, felt a shiver going down her spine as she witnessed her cousin taking out Naruto's clones. It reminded her of how Neji blocked her tenketsu during the Preliminaries, and how she almost died that day. She didn't want to think what could happen to Naruto. After all, if Neji was willing to end the life of his cousin (who also happened to be the future head of their clan), why would he consider being merciful towards the Uzumaki?

'Damn it, this guy is not messing around.' Naruto thought. 'He destroyed my clones and he's not even sweating. But I'm not gonna give up just yet...' "Let's see you do that again! Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOOOOOOF

This time, Naruto created thirty clones and commanded them to attack. Neji faced an orange stampede coming at him. Even Shujinko doubted Neji could handle thirty Narutos at once and come out in perfect conditions. The clones surrounded the Taijutsu user, who started throwing sharp jabs in multiple directions. When Neji seemed to be completely overpowered, he surprised everybody by running through the sea of clones until reaching the real Naruto, who was standing noticeably away from his clones.

"Aaaaaaggghhh!" Naruto seemed to choke as Neji thrust his fingers into his chest like a knife. The clones were unable to do anything as they quickly became dust in the wind, one by one.

"Do you really believed you could fool me using such a pathetic trick like that?" Neji asked as he deactivated his Byakugan. "I don't need my eyes in order to recognize you. You wanted to avoid getting struck by my Juuken. That is why you commanded your clones to attack me while you remained at the back, ignoring that it would instantly make you identifiable. It's over."

"… Yeah? Well, think again!"

Neji's eyes widened in surprise as the Naruto in front of him suddenly became a cloud of smoke. His astonishment only grew bigger when he turned around and saw the Kyuubi Jinchuriki and another clone coming at him at full speed. 'Impossible! He was never trying to avoid me. He lured me into a trap and waited for me to deactivate my Byakugan. There is no use. I must use that technique...'

"This is for underestimating me!" the real Naruto said as he pulled back his right fist and attempted to break Neji's face.

"Hakkeshoo Kaiten!"

The second Naruto's fist met Neji's face, something happened. He and his clone were thrown back by an invisible force that came from Neji, who was spinning at a high speed while releasing a thin layer of chakra around.

"What the hell was that?" Shujinko asked himself. Naruto's clone dissipated itself almost immediately, while the real Naruto was groaning in pain several meters away from Neji.

The people were cheering and shouting in excitement, pleased by the flashy show that was in front of them. However, out of the hundreds and hundreds of spectators, there was one who, unlike the rest, was almost speechless. Hiashi Hyuuga, the head of the Hyuuga clan, knew better than anyone the level of difficulty of that technique. To think that Neji, a thirteen year-old member of the Branch Family, was able to pull it off flawlessly… He always knew his nephew had talent and abilities beyond his age, but this was definitely something else.

"This is the end for you," Neji called out as Naruto struggled to get up and fight back. He was heavily disoriented and his vision was starting to get slightly blurry. "You are within my range."

Hiashi's heart skipped a beat when he saw Neji's stance. That specific stance was used for one technique and one technique only. 'No, it cannot be… Not at his age...'

"Juukenhoo: Hakke Rokujuuyon Shoo!"

Before Naruto knew what was happening, Neji was right in front of him. The genius of the Hyuuga clan then threw several jabs at Naruto's upper body, arms, and legs, blocking his chakra points one by one. The Uzumaki experienced the equivalent of getting his torso and limbs showered by bullets, only these bullets were actually Neji's chakra-infused fingers. "Two palms! Four palms! Eight palms! Sixteen palms! Thirty-two palms! Sixty-four palms!" Neji finished his opponent with a vicious blow that almost sent Naruto flying.

Hinata, who was watching all of this from afar, was having trouble breathing. Neji's brutal assault on her hero triggered an emotional trauma inside of her. Only a month ago, her existence nearly came to an end after suffering a cardiac arrest inflicted by her cousin's Juuken. And now, it was Naruto who was experiencing the pain brought by her family's fighting style. Just thinking about what could happen to him was enough for Hinata to start hyperventilating. That, combined with the delicate state of her hearth, resulted in a panic attack that made Hinata lost her consciousness. Fortunately enough, Kiba was sitting next to her and called a nearby ANBU guard for assistance.

The attack only lasted for a couple of seconds, but the damage in Naruto's chakra pathway system was massive. To the civilian eye, it seemed like he only had a couple of bruises on himself. However, all of the Konoha ninjas knew just how devastating the Hyuuga's fighting style was, and no sane shinobi would wish to be in the receiving end of the Juuken.

"It is over. I have blocked all sixty-four of your chakra points. You are lucky to still be conscious," Neji said with an arrogant tone of voice. Naruto was making short, awkward moves on the ground, shaking in sheer agony. A trail of blood was running down the left corner of his mouth, staining his jacket. Meanwhile, his lungs were desperately shouting for more oxygen, but the pain made it almost impossible for him to breath. "Proctor, I highly suggest you end this match. My opponent is in no condition to ke-"

Neji's sentence was cut short by Naruto. Konoha's Number One Hyperactive Knucklehead ignored the killing pain that his body was going through and clumsily began to stand up. He wanted to look at Neji's face and make fun of him, but all he could do right now was to keep his eyes open and try his hardest not to fall because if he did, he doubted he would be able to get back up again.

For those who witnessed all of the Preliminaries, the current scene was surprisingly familiar. It was like watching Lee against Gaara all over again. The boy who was constantly being ridiculed by his peers was now giving everything he had against a much stronger opponent, enduring the pain and fighting back even if there was nothing he could do.

"This is my last warning," said the Taijutsu user while frowning in annoyance, feeling slightly irked by Naruto's perseverance. "If you continue to push me, you will only get more of the same."

"Yeah? Well, that's... just... too bad," Naruto responded between pauses. "I don't know… when to give up… But I do know… that I'm not letting off the hook… Not after what you said… to me… and Hinata..."

"I see no reason for you to hold a grudge against me. I merely told both of you how the world works. If hearing the truth drives you this mad, then you have no other choice but to quit being a shinobi."

"That's exactly what I'm talking about!" The Uzumaki nearly exploded. He wasted almost all of his oxygen on that last shout, so he forced himself to calm down. "All I hear coming out of your stupid mouth is destiny this, destiny that. Why are you like this? Why do you feel the need to talk down to others just because they're not geniuses like you?"

The combination of Naruto's stubbornness and blindness ultimately forced Neji to take more drastic measures and, for the first time, reveal some of his past. Maybe then he could get through Naruto's thick layer of ignorance that surrounded his mind. "Fine. Since you are so interested, I shall let you in on a little secret..."

* * *

Shujinko furrowed his brows as he watched the strange exchange between Naruto and Neji. At first, he thought Neji was going to deliver the finishing blow, but instead, he was engaging with Naruto in a conversation in the middle of the brawl.

His stupefaction only grew when Neji decided to remove his headband, revealing a strange green mark with the 'X' symbol on his forehead. Shujinko thought it looked awful. Why did Neji have such a thing? He couldn't hear what Neji was saying, but judging by the look on his face, he wasn't pleased in the slightest. 'Not that I can blame him. I wouldn't like to have that thing carved into my forehead either.'

* * *

"… And that is the story behind the Hyuuga clan's Bird Cage Seal. My father lived and died for the sake of the Main Family because it was his destiny, and it is only fitting for his son to share his fate. Do you understand now why destiny is unchangeable?"

Naruto was shocked by Neji's tale, to say the least. All of this time, he thought that the Hyuuga genius was born a douchebag, not that he became one. The story of how he lost his father at a young age due to a broken peace treaty in which Hizashi had little or nothing to do with in the first place was… he had no words to describe it. Now that he knew what corrupted Neji, his deep resentment for the Main Family seemed a lot more understandable, and maybe even justified.

However…

"… I don't know how much it hurt that your dad was killed a long time ago, but thinking that fate is decided just because of that is nothing but a huge mistake! I'm going to prove it to you right here, right now. There's no way I'm gonna lose against a guy that keeps whining and whining about things he can't control!"

Neji, who had his forehead covered by now, smirked. "You truly are hopeless, aren't you?" He then looked at Genma. "Proctor, this foolishness has gone long enough. If you refuse to stop the match in my favor, I will not be held accountable for my actions."

"Nothing's over yet!" Naruto protested. "I can still fight!"

But how was he supposed to fight? Naruto had all sixty-four of his tenketsu blocked. Trying to use his chakra was like trying to squeeze water from a rock. Not to mention, his body was hurting like crazy.

'Damn it, what am I supposed to do? I can't take two steps without falling and my chakra is as good as dead. If this guy gets his hands on me one more time, I'll be done for. Okay, calm down. What was that thing that Ero-Sennin told me about my chakra? Come on, focus, focus, focus...'

"… _You're the owner of two types of chakra: Your own chakra and the Kyuubi's. Of course, you already know how to use your own, but you'll never reach your full potential unless you learn how to use the Kyuubi's chakra at will. Search deep within you, and once you feel that mysterious energy, get a hold of it and take a small portion. Trust me, learning how to do that will provide wonders for you in case you find yourself in a tough spot..."_

'That's it! I'll just use the Kyuubi's chakra instead of my own!' And with that in mind, Naruto performed the Ram hand sign and started to explore the dark regions of his subconsciousness, where a certain bloodthirsty fox could be found. 'Alright, you stupid fox. If you can hear me… GIVE ME YOUR STRENGTH!'

"I already told you, it is useless," Neji said. "Your chakra pathway system is restricted in its entirety."

Naruto wasn't going to answer. He was looking for that powerful chakra that he used to summon Gamabunta when his life was in danger. There was a tingly sensation in his stomach were his seal was placed…

"Why? Why do you go against your destiny so much?"

This time, Naruto did answer. He looked at Neji straight in the eye.

"Because people have been calling me a failure all my life… And I'm gonna prove them wrong… HAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Neji, who still had his Byakugan activated, witnessed something truly astonishing. A strange seal appeared in Naruto's stomach. That very same seal started pouring energy into his chakra pathway system, forcefully uncapping each and every single one of his chakra points. It wasn't long before the Uzumaki's chakra pathway system was working at full force again. Neji had never seen so much chakra concentrated in one individual before, it was insane!

'I-Impossible! He shouldn't be able to do that, I made sure to block his chakra! No, this is no ordinary chakra, this is...'

What Neji saw next made his blood freeze. The enormous amount of chakra that was coming from Naruto's seal suddenly morphed into the face of a demonic creature with fangs. Neji had never seen anything quite like that in his entire life. He was staring at the face of a monster whose growls sent chills down his spine.

'Who-Who is he?! What is he?!'

Naruto's chakra was so amazing that it even became visible to the naked eye, surrounding Naruto's body and creating several fox-like tails. Some civilians thought that the Kyuubi Jinchuriki was getting out of control, but those with more experience could see that Naruto was perfectly conscious. Shujinko was very alarmed at first, for he had seen Naruto under the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra before, but this time it was different. The Uzumaki didn't look like he was about to go on a rampage. Instead, he looked confident and deeply satisfied.

Even the Sandaime Hokage himself was impressed. His tobacco pipe almost slipped from his mouth. 'There is no doubt about it. That is the Kyuubi's chakra. But when did this boy learned how to handle its power? Jiraiya, is this what you have been teaching Naruto?'

"I hope you're ready to fight! Here I go!" Naruto shouted before throwing himself at Neji, who barely managed to escape. Naruto's newfound speed was staggering, even for someone as talented as Neji, who had seen the likes of Lee and Gai in action before.

His doubts were cleared when he threw several shurikens at Naruto, who was coming at him directly. The Uzumaki was able to dodge all of them in a blink of an eye. 'His speed has increased tremendously! What happened to him?'

It was only thanks to his Byakugan that he managed to sense Naruto behind his back. This time, it was too late for him to move out of the way. He had to counterattack…

"If you're too scared to go out there and change your destiny, then fine! You don't have to do anything! Because when I become Hokage..."

"Kaiten!"

"… I'll change the way of the Hyuuga!"

BAAAAAAAAM

Naruto's wild chakra crashed against Neji's Kaiten, resulting in a loud blast that shattered the ground. Even Shujinko, who was watching everything all the way from the waiting area, missed the outcome of the collision. Once the dust started to dissipate, two huge steaming craters were revealed.

'Man, that was intense.' Genma thought as he waved his hand in front of his face to get rid of the dust particles in the air. 'That Naruto brat sure knows how to catch people off guard. But who won? I think I'm gonna need some help here.'

In fact, Genma was about to call one of his assistants when he heard some noises coming from one of the craters. He approached the place where the strange noises were coming from and he saw some rocks moving back and forth.

And then, an arm popped out of the crater.

A bandaged arm.

Slowly but surely, Neji started to come out of his crate. His clothes were dirty and almost completely ruined. While he wasn't bleeding or anything like that, it was obvious that Neji was in a bad shape. Not only did he wasted a lot of chakra on that last Kaiten of his, but he also felt like his whole body was bruised. There were multiple scratches on his face, arms, and torso. He couldn't even keep his Byakugan activated.

The other crate revealed an unconscious Naruto. Holding his left arm and minding his own steps, Neji approached his adversary, enduring the enormous pain that his body was suffering. It was almost surreal. Even though destiny prevailed in the end, Neji was no fool. Naruto did what no other had ever done before: He overpowered the effects of the Juuken and came unimaginably close to beat him. Had it not been for his ability with the Kaiten, he would've been done for. How would've thought the dead-last of the class had what it takes to put the genius of the Hyuuga clan on the ropes?

But regardless of that, the outcome was the same. Naruto was still a failure. A skilled one, but a failure nonetheless.

"Do you understand now the kind of power that our destinies have on us?" Neji asked out loud. He made a pause to catch his breath. "Sorry, but this is reali-"

"HAAAAAAAAA!"

Shujinko's mouth dropped as he saw the real Naruto coming from beneath the ground. Neji was completely taken by surprise and was unable to do anything as Naruto delivered a punch that nearly dislocated his jaw. The Hyuuga landed on the ground with a loud THUD noise.

"I-I cannot mo-move!" Neji said while coughing small amounts of blood.

Naruto said nothing. He was breathing heavily and wincing in pain as he looked at his bloody fingertips. Some of his nails were broken and his hands sported several scratches. In that moment, the 'Naruto' that was supposed to be unconscious poofed, leaving behind nothing but a trail of smoke that quickly vanished.

Genma's eyes widened slightly as he saw the hole on the crater. It all made sense now. During a specific instant, Naruto started digging a hole in order to disappear out of Neji's sight and left a clone in his place to cover it up. In the meantime, Naruto waited for the perfect opportunity to strike, and Neji took the bait.

"… I should've known you were going to use the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. It is your specialty, after all… I was far too careless." Neji muttered.

"… You wanna know something funny? I failed the graduation exam three times in a row. It didn't matter how hard I tried, there was this one mandatory jutsu that I just couldn't do… My clones used to be pathetic. Even someone as serious as you would've laughed at them. So stop crying about the things you can't change and start changing the things you do… Because unlike me, no one has ever called you a failure."

For the first time in his life, Neji didn't know what to say, do, or think. Uzumaki Naruto, the clown whom he mocked and underestimated, had just pulverized him. Uzumaki Naruto, the one Neji saw as a sorry excuse of a shinobi, had won against all odds. Uzumaki Naruto, the village's pariah, dared to defy his destiny… and came victorious in the end.

What was going on? What was the meaning of this?

A smiling Genma looked at the two participants. Naruto was panting and sweating like a pig on a sunny day, but still on his feet nonetheless. Neji, on the other hand, didn't seem like he was trying to get up. And if he was, then he clearly wasn't putting much effort. Judging by his face, Genma knew the kid had given up and accepted defeat. There was no need for this match to go on any further.

"The first round of the third exam is over. Uzumaki Naruto is the winner!"

* * *

Aaaaand that was the end of chapter 29.

Well, the final exam has begun. I really don't have a lot to say about this one, except that this was a chapter that simply had to be done. I tried my best to avoid long conversations and make the fight as short as possible. Chapters like these are a pain to write because Shujinko, the main character of this story, barely has any appearances. However, if I tried to write all of this story just from Shujinko's perspective, it would soon become dull and uninteresting in my opinion.

Glossary:

Tajuu Kage Bunshin No Jutsu - Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu

Hakkeshou Kaiten - Eight Trigrams: Palm Rotation

Juukenhoo: Hakke Rokujuuyon Shoo - Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms

Quick note: My exams period will soon begin, so you might have to wait a while for the next upload. I'll make sure to take some time to write every once in a while, though. Thank you for your understanding

That I'll be all for now. Remember to Review, Favorite & Follow this story.

Ja ne!


	30. Chapter 30 (part 2)

**CHAPTER 30: THE THIRD EXAM (PART 2)**

* * *

(Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

The audience erupted into loud cheers as Naruto bounced all over the stadium grinning and waving his hands, fully enjoying the attention. The crowd's reaction was very much justified. They witnessed an incredible match with lots of techniques and flashy moves that ensured the entertainment. What truly made the fight unique was that the two contenders were far from being equal. In general terms, no one expected Naruto to fight back, let alone win the match. It was literally David against Goliath.

A couple of Chunins approached Neji and tried to put him on a stretcher, but the Hyuuga genius refused. Holding onto the last shred of pride he had left, Neji slowly got up and walked towards the exit, his gaze fixed on his feet. There were so many things going on inside his head, so many questions… What he once thought as unchangeable had now lost its meaning. Neji was deeply confused, not only with himself but with life in general.

Yes, lots of people were clapping and cheering. But not Shujinko.

The Ozuma was lost for words. His mouth was slightly open and his eyes were wide open. He always knew Naruto would give everything he had in a fight, but to be honest, he didn't expect him to win against Neji. The skill gap between those two was way too big to be ignored. Neji not only had the Byakugan, but he was also one of the most intelligent and talented Genins of their generation, a true prodigy of the Hyuuga clan. Only a handful of individuals could claim to be shinobis of a higher caliber.

However, that wasn't the only thing that befuddled Shujinko. At one point, when Neji blocked Naruto's tenketsu, Shujinko had given up on his teammate. It was absurd to think that Naruto could fight back without using his chakra. And then, that wild, reddish energy came to his aid. Shujinko had seen that kind of chakra before. It was the kind of chakra that appeared when Naruto was experiencing high levels of stress and anger. The Hokage explained to him that it was because of the Kyuubi, who took advantage of the temporary weakening of the seal to leak some of its chakra and, therefore, corrupt Naruto. But that didn't happen this time. Naruto didn't go on a rampage or anything similar. He fought Neji just like he did the whole time, going straight forward and planning his next move while he did so.

'Is this really Naruto? What did Jiraiya-sama teach him?' Shujinko thought to himself, trying to understand how could someone's abilities grow so much in only a month.

"Heh, just look at him. That troublesome blond sure likes the attention," Shikamaru said with a smirk. "Still, I have to admit that was pretty impressive. You knew he had an ace hidden under his sleeve this whole time, right Shujinko?"

"Huh? Oh, sure. Yeah, I was expecting him to do something like that. It's just what Naruto always does," Shujinko replied, his voice just a tad bit shaky. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow but decided not to call him out on that.

That was a lie. Even at the beginning of the match, Shujinko had no idea what Naruto could possibly do to win. Neji was such a smart and lethal adversary, and Naruto wasn't exactly a genius. Well, maybe he was actually a genius, a genius in his own way. He couldn't do math very well and his lack of knowledge regarding basic ninja aspects was often annoying, but his unpredictability and his talent to think on his feet were two of his biggest assets. That, coupled with an unbelievable amount of chakra at his disposal and his natural tendency towards cunning strategies, made Naruto a dangerous opponent to go toe to toe with. He would surprise even the likes of Sasuke.

…

Speaking of which, where was Sasuke?

* * *

"That was quite a match," the Kazekage stated. "A fine way to start this magnificent event,"

Hiruzen nodded. "I agree. It is funny how Uzumaki Naruto has always been known here for his ingenious pranks and his shenanigans. I am glad he is using his particular abilities for a higher purpose now."

"Indeed… If you don't mind me asking, has Uchiha Sasuke arrived? I did not see him during the opening ceremony."

In that moment, Raido, one of the Hokage's personal assistants, came into the scene and started whispering to the Hokage's ear. "Hokage-sama, we can't find Sasuke anywhere. For all we know, he could be with Orochimaru right now as we speak. On behalf of my team, I must ask you to disqualify Sasuke immediately. Even if he's not in danger, he deserves it for not being here on time. The rules are very clear on this matter,"

The Hokage took a long puff of his tobacco pipe before clearing his throat. "There is no other choice. Uchiha Sasuke must be disqualified,"

"Hokage-dono, would it be too much to ask you to wait until the rest of the matches end before disqualifying Sasuke?" the Kazekage asked. "He is the main event, after all."

"Kazekage-sama, with all due respect, just because Sasuke is the main event doesn't mean we should be making exceptions," Raido replied. "If we did, it would speak ill of our village. We don't give special privileges to anybody,"

"And I understand. But I am asking you to think of the spectators who came here. Feudal lords and peasants alike have gone through a lot of inconveniences just to see the fight between the last member of the Uchiha clan and Gaara. If you disqualify Sasuke now, I can assure you the crowd won't be happy at all. They will most likely never attend any other Chunin Exams that will take place here in the future. For your sake, I ask you to wait a little longer before taking any drastic measures,"

Politics, the worst enemy of any Kage besides paperwork. The Kazekage brought a very valid point, and Hiruzen knew that. While the protection of his people always came first, the Sarutobi also had to make decisions that wouldn't affect Konoha in the short, medium, and long run. He pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping he was making the right choice. "Very well. Sasuke can still participate if he shows up before the end of the last match of the first round,"

"Thank you very much, Hokage-dono," the Kazekage said while closing his eyes.

Raido couldn't help himself. "Hokage-sama, I apologize, but I must protest. This is far too dangerous to-"

"Raido-san, please instruct your team to keep looking for Sasuke. Inform me of any important updates,"

What else could he do? Raido had already crossed the line once by contradicting the Hokage. It wouldn't do him any good to go for a second insubordination, especially in the presence of the Kazekage. "Hai, Hokage-sama," Raido muttered before using the Shunshin no Jutsu.

"I must say, it is rather uncommon for you to insist so strongly, Kazekage-dono," the old man said, casting a dark look at the leader of Suna. "Could it be that you have ulterior motives?"

"Sharp as ever, Hokage-dono. Yes, I admit I have selfish reasons of my own. We all know the sort of reputation the Uchiha clan had back in its day. One of the strongest clans of Konohagakure, if not the strongest. And now, we have the only survivor of this once numerous clan going against Gaara, our own little prodigy. I cannot think of a better way to test our strength than by facing Uchiha Sasuke, the best of what this village has to offer,"

* * *

Naruto had already joined Shujinko, Shino and Shikamaru in the waiting area, smiling from ear to ear. Both Shujinko and Shikamaru congratulated the blond knucklehead, although Shujinko seemed to be distracted and didn't say much. Shino, true to himself as always, remained silent.

"… And then, when Neji got way too close to the clone I left, I get out of the hole and BAM! I totally pummeled that guy!" Naruto narrated proudly for the third time. He stopped and looked at Shujinko, who was staring at the Arena instead of paying attention to him. "Oi, Shujinko, what's wrong with you? Are you listening to me?"

"Hmh? Oh, yeah. You did really well, Naruto. I'm just thinking about my match. By the way, whose fight is next?"

In that moment, Genma raised his voice, calling out the next participants. "Sabakuu no Temari, Nara Shikamaru, please come down to the Arena so your match can begin,"

Without wasting any time, Temari used her fan to glide down from the waiting area, landing next to the proctor. Half of the spectators were in awe and clapping, enjoying Temari's flashy maneuver. The other half of the spectators were booing and asking when was Sasuke's fight going to start. Shujinko thought it was a miracle that Sasuke had yet to be disqualified.

And of course, Shikamaru started complaining. "Man, this is such a drag. Why do I only get to fight girls? Maybe I should withdraw right now and end this troublesome match before it beg-"

"Come on, Shikamaru! Show them what your lazy ass is made of!" the Uzumaki shouted as he literally pushed Shikamaru, who fell down all the way from the waiting area to the ground of the Arena. As soon as Naruto heard Shikamaru say the word 'withdraw', he knew the lazy Nara was going to give up. All he needed was a little push in the right direction (no pun intended) to get him motivated. Who said Naruto couldn't get things done?

Eventually, Shikamaru got up and removed the dust from his clothes. The irritated look on his face caused Shujinko to hold back a laugh, it was obvious that Shikamaru wanted nothing to do with any of this, yet now that he was here, he was pretty much forced to go along and participate. Dealing with Temari (who had troublesome written all over her face) was problematic alright, but if he gave up now, he would have to deal with both Ino and her mom, who were just as problematic as Temari if not more.

Life sucked sometimes.

While Temari waited impatiently, Shikamaru took his time to slowly walk all the way towards the meeting point at the center of the Arena. He did this for two reasons: Not only because he was lazy, but because it gave him time to think of a strategy. He casually glanced at the trees located at his back where the circular wall began. That particular area had plenty of shadows that he could use to his advantage. 'Yup, that should do...'

Genma cleared his voice. "The second match is about to begin. Sabakuu no Temari, Nara Shikamaru, do any of you have anything to say before I officially announce the start of this encounter?"

"I do," Shikamaru said before staring at Temari. "Could you please do me a favor and withdraw so that none of us have to deal with this nonsense? Trust me, I would withdraw myself if it wasn't for two ladies that would have my head if I did,"

"You've come this far and now you want to quit?" Temari's face was priceless. "You're a joke,"

"Yeah, I've heard that one before,"

"Alright, that's enough. Let's get this show started. Are you two ready? Then… Begin!"

Match number two: Shikamaru vs Temari

Surprisingly enough, it was Shikamaru who made the first move by jumping back and throwing a shuriken at Temari, who merely waved her fan to get rid of the pesky projectile without having the need to get out of the way. What seemed to be a rather pointless move according to Temari's perspective proved her wrong when she saw the amount of smoke that was coming out of nowhere in the spot where Shikamaru supposedly landed.

"That basic shadow jutsu of yours won't get you anywhere!" Temari shouted as she waved her fan once again, creating a strong gust of wind that cleared the smoke almost immediately. She thought Shikamaru had used a smoke bomb to cover his presence and project his shadow towards her. But to her surprise, Shikamaru was nowhere to be seen.

That was when she understood what Shikamaru had in mind. He threw a shuriken to distract her and used a smoke bomb to facilitate his escape. She couldn't blow both the shuriken and the smoke away at the same time since the shuriken came from a different angle. Taking a quick look around her, Temari realized that Shikamaru was hiding in the only place of the Arena where someone could take some sort of cover: In the shadowy area that had plenty of trees and bushes. Not only it granted the Nara an opportunity to hide temporarily, but it was also a strategic place where he could use the shadows to his advantage.

'He's smarter than what he looks, I'll give him that… But it won't be enough to beat me!' "Futon: Kamaitachi no Jutsu!" Temari waved her fan, sending a powerful gust to where Shikamaru was hiding. The wind crashed into the trees, cutting several leafs in the process. Even some branches were cut in half.

Temari focused her gaze, trying to see if the wind caught her opponent. Her eyes widened when she saw a shadow coming her way like a snake determined to catch its prey. The girl from Suna jumped back several times as she desperately avoided the shadow, which in turn grew smaller and smaller until reaching a peaking point where it stopped.

"Damn it, that was so close!" Naruto shouted in frustration. It was incredibly exciting for Naruto to see the lazy Nara in action, mainly because it was a rare occurrence.

Shujinko knew what Shikamaru tried to do. He waited for Temari to send her attack before activating his shadow jutsu in an attempt to catch her off guard. It was true that Temari's attacks were powerful, but apparently she couldn't send gusts of wind in rapid-fire succession, she needed to wait some time before sending another one.

However, Shikamaru's plan wasn't flawless. Temari managed to get away from his shadow, and now she knew the shadow wouldn't be able to touch her if she kept a safe distance. And since she was a long-range fighter, the circumstances suited her better. With the use of her fan, she drew a line on the ground where Shikamaru's shadow stopped, pointing out the distance that she was to maintain if she wanted to avoid getting caught.

Then, all of a sudden, Shikamaru did… the pose.

Oh yes, Shujinko recognized the pose alright. During their games of Shogi together, Shikamaru had the habit of cupping his fingers and closing his eyes whenever he wanted to think of an elaborated move. At first, Shujinko thought it was a little weird, but he soon came to realize how effective the pose apparently was. Whenever Shikamaru did that, he would beat Shujinko in five moves or less.

Shujinko once tried to do the pose against Shikamaru after losing six times in a row. Needless to say, it didn't work, and he ended up losing ten consecutive games of Shogi.

* * *

"Asuma, what on Earth is Shikamaru doing?" Kurenai asked, her red eyes blinking in confusion.

The son of the Hokage smiled. He knew exactly what was going on. "Let's just say Shikamaru has finally taken this fight seriously. He always does that thing with his hands when he's planning a strategy, and you wouldn't believe what he comes up with once he's done,"

"I still don't understand,"

"At first, neither did I," Asuma admitted after letting out a chuckle. "There are very few things that can motivate someone as lazy as Shikamaru, and playing Shogi is one of them. Right now, he's analyzing the best course of action, the same way he evaluates what pieces should he sacrifice and what pieces should he move in order to win,"

Kurenai frowned in annoyance. "This is no game of Shogi, Asuma. He should know better than that."

"Normally, I would agree with you. But this is a special case. Shikamaru is so intelligent he can think of an extremely effective strategy within minutes if not less. I swear, that kid is a genius,"

"A genius? Wait a minute, I reviewed his grades back at the Academy when we were dividing the Genins into teams. His marks were almost as bad as Naruto's! How is he a genius?"

"Trust me, he is. He's just too lazy to put any effort. He always dozed off during tests and he didn't even bother to pick up his pencil to take notes. I knew there was something wrong with him, so I decided to take matters into my own hands. This one time, I gave him an IQ test and convinced him it was just a puzzle game that would keep him entertained. I wasn't expecting him to get the kind of score he got, not at all."

"Why? What did he get?"

Asuma smiled as he lighted another cigarette, ignoring the strict no-smoking laws of the Arena. "He's a sharp one, alright. His IQ is over 200!"

Kurenai's jaw dropped. "O-Over 200?! That's ridiculous! He's smarter than both of us combined!"

"Both of us? That's an understatement. When it comes to sheer intelligence, the only who's smarter than him is his old man, Nara Shikaku. Trust me, it runs in the family."

* * *

For a moment, the clouds in the sky covered the sunlight, and that was when Shikamaru opened his eyes. Before he began his tactic, he had to withstand the gust of wind that Temari sent his way. Temari was starting to lose her patience, and the lack of action was starting to get to her. The moment the wind stopped, Shikamaru threw a kunai at Temari, who easily parried it.

"Kagemane no Jutsu!"

The shadow came once again after Temari, who smirked as she knew the shadow wasn't going to get her. After all, she was standing behind the line she previously made on the ground.

"W-What the…!"

The shadow created by Shikamaru surpassed its previous limits and almost reached Temari, who barely had any time to jump around like a kangaroo high on caffeine. At one point, the shadow curved in a certain angle while still chasing Temari until stopping once again. Shikamaru was already in plain sight by now, breathing heavily as his shadow retreated.

'This is my chance!" Temari thought as she pulled her arms back and prepared to wave her giant fan. "Fuuton: Kamaitac-"

Temari's muscles suddenly froze. Her sense of balance disappeared and was replaced by an unknown force that controlled her. She tried to move, but all she could do was to helplessly twitch. 'No… No way… I can't move...'

Shikamaru smirked. "Finally… The Kagemane no Jutsu is a success,"

"That's impossible!" Temari shouted in panic. "Your shadow hasn't touched me!"

"Oh, really? I'll let you look behind you," Shikamaru said as he moved his head to the right.

Temari's head moved as well, and when she looked at the ground, her eyes widened to the point of resembling dinner plates. "Th-The h-hole?"

"Yup. During Naruto's fight against Neji, he burst out of that hole while his clone covered for him. I used that hole to get to you while you were too busy dodging my original shadow,"

"What are you talking about? I saw your shadow, it never reached me! Your shadow wasn't supposed to stretch that far in the first place!"

"That's why I waited for the clouds to cover the son." the Nara replied indifferently. "Look at the shadow produced by the wall. Don't you see something different? It's larger than before. I can use the shadows around my environment to strengthen my own. While you were hopping around like a rabbit, a second shadow came out of the original one. This other shadow used Naruto's hole as a tunnel and came out behind you, and now you're under my control. It's over,"

The girl from Suna felt as if a bucket of cold water was dropped on top of her head. She deeply underestimated Shikamaru's intelligence and his skills with his shadow possession jutsu. All of this time, she thought she was the one leading Shikamaru into a dead-end when in reality, it was the complete opposite. Out of frustration, she tried to break free from the shadow, her face contorted in anger.

"Don't bother, it's useless," Shikamaru said.

"SHUT UP! I'm not done fighting yet! You're such an arrogant and pretentious little… jerk!"

'Geez, she's so loud,' Shikamaru thought. 'Whatever, it's time to end this troublesome fight once and for all,'

The two of them walked straight until they were face to face. Temari was sweating by now, wondering what was Shikamaru going to do to her. She was completely defenseless. One small move could seriously hurt her, if not kill her. The audience was absolutely silent, waiting in anticipation, not knowing what was about to happen. The only individual who was making any kind of noise was Choji, who was furiously eating out of his potato chips bag. Ino and Sakura, who were sitting next to Choji, didn't even noticed the crumbs that were coming out of his mouth and landing on their dresses.

Shikamaru slowly raised his hand, and Temari's heart skipped a beat. She was sure this was going to be the end of her. It was all over…

"… That's it. I forfeit,"

…

"WHAT THE HECK DID YOU JUST SAY?" Ino screeched all the way from her seat. Her voice echoed in all of the Arena.

"I said I give up," Shikamaru repeated after releasing Temari, who fell to the ground unexpectedly. "My shadow jutsu was about to fade away. It's a long-duration technique. Continuing the fight would've been pointless. And besides, this whole thing was a drag to begin with. I just want to go home and watch the clouds or something, I don't want anything to do with this troublesome tournament,"

'He's one weird kid, that's for sure,' Genma thought as he raised his voice. "Nara Shikamaru has forfeited. Sabakuu no Temari wins by default!"

After a minute of silence that was the result of anticipation and disbelief, the crowd started booing Shikamaru like crazy. They were heavily disappointed by the end of the match. For a moment, they forgot about Sasuke and focused on Shikamaru's fight as it became more intense every passing minute. To have it all end with a withdraw from the candidate that was clearly the winner out of the two was such a waste.

"Aaaaarghhhh! That idiot! He had her right where he wanted her! Why did he have to give up?! That lazy good-for-nothing could've become a Chunin!" Naruto shouted at the top of his lungs. His eyes were blank and irrational, and there was steam coming out of his nostrils. He was so mad he almost pulled out his own hair.

Shujinko didn't know whether to be surprised or not by the outcome. It was true that Shikamaru's decision to quit was pretty lame and a huge buzz killer, but even so, he had nothing left to prove. Shikamaru completely neutralized Temari and showed exceptional strategic thinking skills, which was essentially what the evaluators were looking for in the candidates. One could say Shikamaru lost the match but won the fight.

Temari returned to the waiting area with a sour expression on her face. It was obvious that her pride had taken a beating. Meanwhile, Naruto went downstairs in search for the Nara genius to tell him how stupid he was for giving up. While all of this was happening, a Chunin approached Genma and whispered something into his ear before leaving. With an annoyed look on his face, Genma spoke up. "We will now have a 20-minute break for the crowd to enjoy. Please, don't leave the Arena and use the designated areas for civilians. Thank you,"

The crowd wasn't happy with the decision. They all began chanting things like 'We want to see Uchiha Sasuke!' and 'This is not what we paid for!'. Some of them even began throwing garbage at the Arena, like banana peels and soda cans. As for Shujinko, he took the opportunity to go to the bathroom now while he could. Shinobis who participated in the third exam were given a special bathroom according to their village. They wouldn't allow two ninjas from different villages to share the same bathroom in order to prevent any sort of dangerous behavior. Luckily, the bathroom for Konoha shinobis was the closest, and it was available.

After using the toilet, Shujinko washed his hands and face. He hated waiting for a fight and waiting in general. Back in the Academy, he always volunteered to go first whenever there was a test going on. He dried his face with a towel and opened the door to go out. Little did he know, there was someone waiting outside.

"Oh, it's you, Shino," Shujinko said as he faced the quiet boy in front of him. At first, he almost stuttered as he wasn't expecting Shino, out of all people, to be waiting for him, but he managed to get himself under control. "Go ahead, it's all yours,"

His whole body tensed when Shino stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder and getting closer to him. It was definitely not something one would expect out of Shino. "Listen carefully," he began to say in his usual monotone voice. "I have reasons to believe the Genins from Sunagakure are up to something,"

"What? What are you talking about, Shino?"

"I sent one of my bugs to spy on them. I cannot confirm anything at the moment, but they are certainly showing strange behaviors. The terms 'plan' and 'objective' were said repeatedly during their conversations, and for some reason, they are also very worried about Sasuke not being here,"

The Ozuma narrowed his eyes. "Why do they care about Sasuke not being here? If he doesn't show up, then Gaara wins by default. It doesn't make any sense,"

"That is why I said I cannot confirm anything at the moment. I merely thought it would be wise for you to know this. Do not go around propagating what I just told you. I could be in the wrong… or maybe not," and with that said, Shino stepped out of the way and entered the bathroom.

After getting over the weirdness of the situation, Shujinko walked back to the waiting Area, wondering what were the Sand Siblings up to. Maybe it was because they were foreigners, but something about them felt… odd. At first, Shujinko used to ignore those thoughts, but now that Shino told him what he knew, he was starting to feel uneasy.

When the 20-minute break was over, the participants came back to the waiting area. Shujinko distanced himself from the Sand Siblings and observed their reactions. Kankuro and Temari looked on edge, but they weren't exactly freaking out. Gaara was just being his usual lunatic self, his eyes staring deeply into the nothingness. Shujinko winced. He had no idea what was going on inside Gaara's head, and quite frankly, he didn't want to know.

"Now that the break is over, we can finally get on with the third exam," Genma told the audience. "Aburame Shino, Sabakuu no Kankuro, please come down to the Arena so your match can begin,"

Kankuro visibly paled. He shared a nervous look with his sister before raising his right hand while placing his left one on his stomach. "Proctor, I'm not feeling so good all of a sudden. I forfeit the match,"

'What the hell?' Shujinko thought in awe. He wasn't the only one. Naruto and Shikamaru were also confused by Kankuro's sudden decision, especially because up until now he hadn't shown any signs of sickness or weakness whatsoever.

"Very well. Sabakuu no Kankuro has forfeited. In that case, we will make a small change of plans. This match will be between Aburame Shino and Ozuma Shujinko instead. May the two mentioned candidates please come down to the Arena?"

"This is ridiculous!" Shujinko shouted. "First I was supposed to fight Kankuro, then Iruka-sensei, and now Shino? Is this a joke or something?"

There was a reason behind the sudden change in the line-up. Since the objective of the third exam was to show qualities of a Chunin and not necessarily to beat your opponent, it was acceptable for a Chunin like Iruka to go against a Genin should the occasion ask for it. However, it was far more preferable to pair Genins against Genins so that they both stood on equal grounds in terms of ability and chances. And since Kankuro forfeited before the match even began, the system automatically paired Shino and Shujinko together so that Shujinko could go against someone of his level instead.

What bothered Shujinko was to constantly change his strategies. He spent all of his time preparing himself for his fight against Kankuro. Then, they told him he was going to fight Iruka. And now, out of nowhere, he was supposed to fight Shino. How could someone devise a strategy when his appointed adversary was changing randomly?

Before Shujinko could protest some more, Genma pulled out a small watch from his pocket and shook his head. 'What a bummer. Sasuke hasn't shown up and he has run out of time. It would've been a fun match to watch, but what can you do about it?' "Attention, please. Before the match starts, I want to make an announcement. Uchiha Sasuke has failed to present himself. It is now my duty to call off his fight against Sabakuu no Gaara and disqualify him under the-"

"WAIT!" Naruto shouted as he jumped over the rail and landed on the ground of the Arena.

"Naruto, don't do that… Ah, damn it!" Shujinko cursed as he followed his teammate.

"What do you think you're doing, gaki?" Genma asked Naruto once the blonde had gotten close to him with Shujinko following behind. "You're interrupting the exam. Get back in the waiting area right now,"

But Naruto wouldn't have any of it. "You can't disqualify Sasuke! He worked so hard to get here, it's not fair!"

"Can't you just give him just a little bit of time?" Shujinko inquired.

"Sorry, but the rules are clear. We already gave him plenty of time, more than what we should've in the first place. As I was saying, by the authority given to me by Hokage-sama, I hereby declare Uchiha Sasuke dis-"

SWOOOOOSH

Out of nowhere, a small tornado of leafs appeared, and two figures were in the center. Naruto and Shujinko turned their heads around, and as the leafs dispersed, they immediately recognized their teammate and sensei.

Sasuke looked somewhat different. He was wearing black shorts and a black, high-collared shirt. His left arm and hand were covered in bandages with many small belts adorning his forearm and wrist. His hair had grown slightly larger as well. As for Kakashi, he was exactly the same as ever.

Kakashi had the audacity to give Genma an eye-smile. "Sorry for being late. We lost track of time on our way here,"

The proctor sighed. "Kakashi, your tardiness is going to be the end of you one of these days," and yet, Genma seemed amused by his antics. "Sasuke's match was about to be canceled five seconds ago. You made it just in time,"

Kakashi let out a nervous laugh while scratching the back of his head. "Oh, so Sasuke hasn't been disqualified yet? That's good news. For a minute, I thought he wasn't going to be able to compete. I'm glad that's not the case,"

The audience went wild. The villagers thought this was all part of a plan, a scheme to trick the crowd into thinking the Uchiha wasn't going to come, thus creating an atmosphere of anticipation and excitement. Kakashi's theatrical entrance with Sasuke gave the final touch.

'What a bunch of showoffs, arriving late on purpose just because they can,' Shujinko thought with a smirk. 'Still, I have to admit that entrance was really cool,'

"So you finally decided to show up, huh?" Naruto asked Sasuke with a mocking grin. "And here I thought you were too scared to come because you didn't want to face me! Don't worry, I don't blame you at all,"

Sasuke smirked. "Judging by that cocky attitude of yours, I take it you won your match,"

"Of course I did! Neji just had the beating of a lifetime, believe it!"

They both stared at each other with such intensity that even Shujinko felt the need to remain quiet, not wanting to disrupt the special moment. The rivalry between Sasuke and Naruto was as tight as ever, and things had gotten a lot more interesting. Naruto had drastically increased his strength during the last month. Now, it was time for Sasuke to show the world what an Uchiha could do by going against Gaara.

"Well, now that Sasuke is here, we can finally start his match," Genma said before speaking to the audience. "Ladies and gentleman, the current match between Aburame Shino and Ozuma Shujinko will be postponed. The fight that will now take place will be between Sabakuu no Gaara and Uchiha Sasuke,"

"Wait a minute, I thought it was my turn!" the Ozuma said.

"Sorry, but the crowd will have a mental breakdown if we don't do this now. This is what they've been waiting for. Don't worry, if you waited so much for your teammate to appear, I'm sure you can wait for your match,"

Shujinko's shoulders sank as he lowered his head, a dark and gloomy aura surrounding his body. Genma had a point. Sasuke's match was way more important than his and everyone knew it, including himself. Naruto, who was standing right next to him, snickered.

Kakashi approached Shujinko and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure your match will be just as exciting. For now, let's just head back and watch your teammate, alright?"

"… Whatever. Oi Sasuke, if you're gonna wait until my match to show up, at least don't disappoint me. I want to become a Chunin as well,"

"That's right! You better kick Gaara's ass and advance to the next round," Naruto warned him, his eyes shining with determination. "And when you do, be ready to face me, because I want to fight you as well,"

In response, Sasuke gave a half-nod. Shujinko gestured Naruto to follow him, which he did, but not before giving Sasuke one final glance. Both the Uzumaki and the Ozuma reached the exit and started walking up the stairs. It was a long way up, and the silence was starting to become awkward, so Shujinko decided to make some small talk while they made their way up to the waiting area. "So, it looks like Sasuke is in for a tough match," he stated.

"Yeah, you can say that again. But I'm sure he'll be fine," Naruto replied in all seriousness. "Sasuke will make it through one way or another, believe it,"

"I'm wondering if he has any tricks up his sleeve… like you,"

"Huh? What do you mean like me?"

"Don't play dumb, Naruto. That red chakra was something out of the ordinary. I had never seen you expel so much chakra before, and I'm your teammate. Would you mind telling me what was that all about?"

In reality, Shujinko already knew the Kyuubi had something to do with it. He merely wanted to see how much Naruto was willing to tell him. Ever since the Hokage revealed to him that Naruto was the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, he wondered whether he should tell him or not. Of course, he wasn't going to at first simply because there was no need. But now that Naruto was more in touch with the beast inside of him, he was eager to stop beating around the bush and tell him he was aware of his condition and that he didn't think any less of him.

"Oh, that? Yeah, it was just a trick. Ero-sennin taught me a lot of cool stuff," Naruto replied vaguely.

"Really? Like what?" By now, it was clear that Shujinko was trying to get some information out of Naruto. He was really curious about what other things Naruto had in store. Shujinko was well aware that what he was doing wasn't right since a ninja was supposed to keep his techniques a secret, but he just couldn't resist.

Whatever answer the Uzumaki was about to give him, it died off as soon as they heard footsteps somewhere near them. It was Gaara, who was walking down the stairs next to them. The red-haired maniac had a twisted smile on his face, a smile that made both Naruto's and Shujinko's skins crawl. The two Genins went speechless as they waited for Gaara to reach the hall that connected the Arena to the rest of the building.

Once Gaara was out of sight, Shujinko sighed in relief. "That guy sure knows how to give someone the creeps," he stated as a matter of fact. "Even after all of what he said yesterday, I still can't understand him. It's as if killing is the only reason why he exists. Had it not been for Gai-sensei's interruption, he probably would've killed both of us and Shikamaru,"

Naruto wasn't so sure about that. Someone as mentally unstable as Gaara probably didn't care who he was trying to kill. Genins, Jounins, siblings, foreigners, weak ninjas, strong ninjas, it didn't matter to him. However, Gaara seemed to be particularly interested in Sasuke, to the point were he refrained himself from killing him and Shujinko right there when he had the perfect chance.

"Sasuke doesn't know Gaara. He doesn't know what he's capable of," Shujinko continued to say. "Unless he does something amazing, he's gonna get himself..."

In that moment, they both realized what was going to happen. Gaara was going to unleash his wildest emotions in an act of unspeakable violence against Sasuke. Naruto and Shujinko shared a frightened look before running upstairs where Kakashi was.

This match had to stop, otherwise, Sasuke was going to die.

* * *

"I am most eager to see the result of this encounter, Kakashi," said Gai while giving the Hatake a challenging look. "After all, who can teach his student the best can also be considered a competition, and as you ought to know by now, I am your greatest and fiercest rival,"

"… Hmh? I'm sorry, Gai. I didn't quite hear you,"

…

"AAAAAAARRRGGHH! KAKASHIIIII! WHY DO YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO ACT SO HIP AND COOL?!"

Every single Genin (except for Lee) and the spectators nearby had a big sweat drop running down their heads, unable to understand who could a grown man be so dramatic and ridiculous. Even Kakashi, who knew Gai from a very young age, still couldn't quite understand his reactions, although he sort of enjoyed ignoring Gai on purpose. The others, however, thought it was pathetic.

As for Lee, he was finally awake again and out of the hospital. He now had to use a crutch in order to move around, which was better than staying in bed all day. Instead of his jumpsuit, he was wearing blue pants and a matching kimono since it made it more comfortable for him to move.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

Everyone turned around to see a very agitated Naruto gasping for breath. Shujinko was right next to him.

"Naruto-kun!" Shujinko-kun!" Lee exclaimed, happy to see his two friends after a month in the hospital.

"There's no time to lose! We have to cancel this match right now while we still can!"

"Calm down, Naruto. Explain yourself," Kakashi said.

"You don't understand. That Gaara guy isn't like the rest of us. He's not just gonna fight Sasuke, he's gonna try to kill him! That's the only thing he's been thinking about ever since he got here!"

Naruto's statement brought different reactions. Ino and Choji thought the Uzumaki was, as always, exaggerating. Sakura wanted to believe the same as Ino and Choji, but at the same time, she knew Naruto wouldn't lie about something like that. As for Lee, he didn't know what to think. He couldn't quite imagine someone who would genuinely kill just for the sake of it. On the other hand, his current state was proof of Gaara's violent nature. If the boy from Suna was capable of inflicting so much pain upon him, he could do the same to Sasuke.

However, Shujinko and Shikamaru knew Naruto was right. All three of them were present at the time when Gaara tried to kill Lee simply because he wanted to. They were first-hand witnesses of what Gaara stood for, which was the death of everyone he came across regardless of the circumstances. Gaara seemed to love only one thing: Himself.

After a minute of silence, Kakashi closed his only visible eye and focused his gaze on the match, which was about to begin. "Don't worry about it. Sasuke knows what he's going up against,"

"Damn it, sensei! Did you even heard a word of what I just said!?" Naruto snarled, clearly getting angry by Kakashi's composed demeanor.

"Of course I did. You were being very loud. Now, I'm gonna ask you to keep your mouth shut and watch the match. Sasuke might have one or two surprises in store,"

Naruto had no other choice but to do what he was being told to. He decided to keep quiet and watch just like everyone else, but if he sensed that Sasuke was close to getting himself killed, he would jump right into the Arena and stop the fight one way or another, consequences be damned.

* * *

"Alright, listen up here," Genma said. "The rules are the same as in the Preliminaries. You fight until one of you dies, forfeits, or is too injured to continue. Other than that, you can do whatever you want. However, I have the authority to stop the match at any time if I deem it necessary. Any questions? No? Good, now wait until my signal to begin,"

Ignoring the rest of the world, Gaara started whispering to himself, just like a madman. "Mother… please, forgive me. Up until now, I have offered you nothing but bad blood. Bad, dirty, tasteless blood. I have not been a child worthy of you… But I know, Mother, I know that the blood that I am about to offer you will be more than great," and after saying those words, he gave Sasuke a blank stare. "Uchiha Sasuke, your blood will be the best one Mother has ever tried. I will make sure of it,"

The face of the raven-haired boy didn't change in the slightest. Kakashi had already told him what kind of freak Gaara was and how he attacked people as if they were preys. Whatever nonsense that came out of his mouth would most certainly not get to him. He needed to remain calm and plan his next move, and thanks to the training he got from Kakashi, he already knew what to do. "Let's do this,"

"Are you two ready? Then… Begin!"

* * *

Aaaaaaaand that was the end of chapter 30.

This chapter is fairly similar to the last one. Again, Shujinko didn't have much participation. But trust me, we will definitely see him in action in the following updates. You already know what comes next, right?

I deliberately made Shikamaru's fight with Temari shorter and simplified, because let's be real, we all know what happens and we all want to move forward. I must certainly do, at least.

Some of you might be wondering why I chose Iruka to replace Kankuro as Shujinko's opponent (before

Shujinko was paired with Shino after Kankuro forfeited). I'm aware that I explained the reason back there, but there's an extra reason. And what would that extra reason be? You'll just have to wait until the end of this story if you want to find out.

Glossary:

Fuuton: Kamaitachi no Jutsu – Wind style: Wind Scythe Jutsu

Kagemane no Jutsu – Shadow Possession Jutsu

That will be all for now. Oh, and by the way, this story is now over 200.000 words long. Yay! Please remember to Review, Favorite & Follow.

Ja ne!


	31. Chapter 31 (part 3)

**CHAPTER 31: THE THIRD EXAM (PART 3) / THE KONOHA CRUSH**

* * *

(Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

Match number 3: Sasuke vs Gaara

Sasuke started by throwing two shurikens at Gaara, whose sand created a clone that caught them with its fist and threw them back to Sasuke. The Uchiha jumped to the right, evading the incoming weapons and approaching the sand clone.

With a left hook, the Uchiha attacked the clone's neck. Instead of dispelling the clone, it started absorbing his hand. Luckily, Sasuke reacted quickly and smashed the clone's face with his right palm, effectively destroying the sand doppelganger. Not wasting any time, Sasuke pulled back his right arm and attempted a frontal approach. Without having to move a finger, Gaara created a sand wall between the two of them.

Sasuke's fist was only inches away…

ZIP

In a blink of an eye, Sasuke disappeared and reappeared behind Gaara, who barely had any time to respond. 'He is fast! Just like the other one!'

BAAAM!

Gaara's defense was useless against the speed of the Uchiha. Like a memory of the past coming to reality, the Ichibi Jinchuriki was sent back by Sasuke, whose Taijutsu had an uncanny resemblance to Lee's Goken.

"So that's your sand armor, huh?" Sasuke asked as he saw Gaara's face tearing apart. "I'll make sure to smash it to pieces,"

'His speed has increased dramatically!' Gai thought in awe. 'His moves, his stances… that has to be...'

"That's my Taijutsu!" It was all too obvious for Lee, who felt as if he was watching himself fighting from the outside. "How did he do it? He could not have mastered the Goken in such a short amount of time, that is just unthinkable!"

"He copied it from you, Lee," Kakashi answered. "You have to take into account that Sasuke is an Uchiha, a shinobi who has the Sharingan. When you two fought, he used his Sharingan against you, and now he knows how to move almost exactly as you do. We focused all of our efforts on increasing his speed so that he could use your Taijutsu effectively,"

Shujinko narrowed his eyes. Sasuke speed was great, greater than it ever was before. However, it couldn't be on par with Lee's natural speed. Activating his Karura Tensei, Shujinko sensed Sasuke's chakra being gathered on his feet.

'That's how he does it! He focuses his chakra on his feet, which makes a ninja run faster! That, combined with the speed training that he got from Kakashi, is what grants him that level of acceleration,'

Indeed. In order to achieve the speed necessary, Sasuke had to combine chakra control and physical endurance. That was the only way to come close to Lee's speed in only just a month of training.

The Uchiha charged again. With the use of his tremendous speed, he started running around Gaara in circles. The sand reacted by forming a ring around Gaara to keep him safe. In a matter of seconds, Sasuke slipped under the ring of sand, grabbed Gaara by his shoulders and buried his knee deep inside his gut. As Gaara doubled down, Sasuke disappeared out of the ring and positioned himself outside. The Ichibi Jinchuriki send a wave of sand his way, but the raven-haired boy dodged it and kicked Gaara once he was close enough. Once again, his opponent was left on the ground while the crowd cheered and clapped.

'You truly are a genius, Uchiha Sasuke. A prodigy of your clan and a fearsome opponent,' Lee thought as he watched the battle. 'However, using my Taijutsu requires a lot of stamina. It is not easy to maintain that level of speed, does it?'

The difference between those two was that Lee spent all of his time and energy working on his Taijutsu. Before his incident with Gaara, Lee could outperform almost any ninja in terms of raw speed once his weights were removed. And he could maintain that level of speed because his body was used to it. After all, his training revolved around physical endurance of the highest caliber.

Sasuke, however, wasn't like that. It was true that his Taijutsu was like his own version of Lee's Goken, and he had the speed to make it work. But reaching a certain level of speed and having the ability to maintain that certain level of speed were not the same thing. Sasuke was already sweating and breathing heavily. Imitating Lee's Taijutsu was taking a toll on him, and it was only a matter of time before he ran out of stamina.

He sharpened his gaze when the boy from Suna performed a hand sign. He thought he would send some sort of projectile towards him, but instead, Gaara gathered all of his sand and created some sort of spherical shield around him. Then, with the little sand he had left, he created an eye and placed it above the sand shield, enabling him to see in any direction.

This was Gaara's most powerful version of his sand shield.

Temari's hands were trembling. If Gaara was using this jutsu, it could only mean one thing: He was losing whatever grip on his emotions he had left. At this point, it became obvious that Gaara had no interest in following the plan whatsoever. Her brother didn't have the will or the drive to fight his urge to kill, which was why reasoning with him was as useless as it was dangerous. He was like a bomb that silently exploded at the slightest hint of adversity. 'If this keeps going like this, this whole operation will be at risk!'

"If that's how you want to play..." Sasuke said before throwing himself at Gaara. Thanks to his Sharingan, Sasuke was able to prevent getting killed by the sudden spikes that appeared from the shield's surface by jumping over it. Not wasting any time, he threw several kunais at the shield, followed by a Fuuma Shuriken. All of those weapons failed to get through the defense and ended up on the ground. Just to test his theory, Sasuke attached an exploding tag to a kunai and threw it at Gaara.

BOOOOM

The smoke dissipated, revealing a sand shield in perfect state. The explosion made no damage, and that was when Sasuke confirmed his suspicions. The sand shield created by Gaara was like a fortress designed to protect the Ichibi Jinchuriki from any attacks and, at the same time, it had the ability to harm anyone that came too close.

'What is he going to do now?' Shujinko wondered. This sand shied was seemingly impenetrable. Sasuke's speed was not going to help now, and what jutsu in his arsenal could possibly be strong enough to get through the solid sand?

Gai raised his voice. "Kakashi, you were there when that deplorable Gaara fought my charming Lee. You know very well that Taijutsu is not enough to beat someone like him. You did not just teach Sasuke how to run faster, did you?"

"That's correct," Kakashi answered. "I guess you could say training Sasuke's speed was a means to an end. There are some techniques outside the field of Taijutsu that require velocity and not just a high amount of chakra. You know what I'm talking about, Gai,"

"… No… You didn't..."

Sasuke suddenly decided to run up the wall, reaching a very high altitude where he took a knee and started weaving hand signs until he stopped and grabbed his left wrist with his right hand.

"In case you were wondering why I took Sasuke under my wing… It's because he's like me,"

A loud buzzing sound broke into the scene as a bright blue chakra engulfed Sasuke's hand. Soon, that highly concentrated chakra acquired an electric nature that produced a sound reminiscent of many birds chirping at the same time. It was as if Sasuke was holding a static lighting bolt with his hand.

"I-I see," Gai stuttered. "That is why you wanted Sasuke to reach a certain level of speed,"

Kakashi eye-smiled. "Yup, pretty much,"

'I've seen that technique before," Shujinko thought in awe. 'Kakashi-sensei used it back in Nami no Kuni when he was fighting Zabuza. I never thought I would see that strange jutsu again, let alone see Sasuke do it,'

"His chakra… It's actually visible. Amazing," Sakura whispered.

"It is the only technique that Kakashi hasn't copied from someone else," Gai added while the rest listened eagerly. "Its name comes from the sound that the jutsu produces while being active, like birds chirping in the sky. That is why the name of that technique is… Chidori, one thousand birds," Suddenly, Sasuke started running down the wall at an amazing speed while his left hand left marks on the concrete. 'Copying Lee's Taijutsu and mastering the Chidori in just a month of training,' Gai said to himself as he saw Sasuke coming closer and closer to Gaara. 'An impressive feat, even by the standards of the Uchiha clan,'

The sand shield formed several pikes and attempted to stab Sasuke, who dodged them all with the use of his Sharingan. At last, Sasuke saw an opening and executed the jutsu that took him so long to dominate. The jutsu that would, unknowingly to him at the moment, become essential in his life as a shinobi. "HAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

PSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Sasuke's hand penetrated the shield, splashing sand all over the place. The pikes that once tried to kill the Uchiha were now frozen, completely motionless. The eye that Gaara used to observe the outside crumbled until becoming particles of sand that the wind quickly blew away.

"Woooooooah," Choji was so impressed that he dropped his last bag of chips, something he never would've done even after eating a significant amount of them. For the members of the Akimichi clan, throwing away perfectly edible food was seen as offensive, almost a taboo.

Silence reigned all over the stadium. Only the wind passing by made any sort of noise, like a gentle reminder that time was going by. But then…

"My blood… My blood! MY BLOOD! THIS IS MY BLOOOOOD!"

Inside of the sand shield, something grabbed Sasuke's arm and tried to pull him in. With his eyes widened in surprise, Sasuke tried to get his arm back outside, but the thing that was grabbing him was ridiculously strong, and it started to crush his wrist. Letting out a scream, Sasuke was forced to activate the Chidori once again. At last, he managed to retrieve his arm, which now had multiple bloodstains with half of the belts shred to pieces.

And as he jumped back to gain some distance, the Uchiha saw something through the hole he left in the sand shield. A grotesque arm of sorts was waving around like a snake, which was undoubtedly what tried to crush his wrist just a few seconds ago. Before he could make sense of what he was seeing, the sand shield started to fall apart, revealing a wounded Gaara with his chest covered in blood.

Shujinko had no idea what was going on. All of a sudden, Temari and Kankuro were helping Gaara while Baki talked to Genma about something. He tried to listen, but for some reason, he found himself unable to as he was too busy staring at the white feathers that were falling from the sky. There were so many of them, and they all looked so fluffy and soft. His eyes were heavy, and once he started blinking,

he didn't stop until his eyes were fully closed. The Ozuma didn't even feel the impact of his head crashing against the wall behind him. Before he knew it, Shujinko was sleeping like a baby…

* * *

"… Wake up, Shujinko,"

'Is that Kakashi-sensei's voice?' Shujinko's vision became clearer every passing second, and after blinking a few times, he was finally awake. "What the… What on Earth just happened? Was I sleeping?"

"You were the victim of a Genjutsu," Kakashi replied as he helped Shujinko to stand up. "Konoha is under attack. Sunagakure and Otogakure have launched an invasion and we have to stop them before it's too late,"

Shujinko's eyes widened in shock as he saw the people surrounding him were dead asleep. Kakashi's words, as crazy as they were, proved to be true as the sound of metal clashing against metal increased every passing second. Gai was carefully picking up an unconscious Lee while Sakura was helping Ino and Choji break free of the Genjutsu.

"A-A-An invasion?" Shujinko stuttered in disbelief. "What are we supposed to do now? And where's Sasuke?"

"Sasuke is chasing Gaara as we speak. Your objective now is to find Sasuke, return to the village, find a safe spot and await further orders. Oh, and make sure you don't get yourself killed,"

"Do we have anything that could lead us to Sasuke?" Sakura asked while she helped Naruto to wake up.

"That's where I come in," Shujinko looked down at Kakashi's right foot. There was a Pug wearing a Konoha headband. "Name's Pakkun. I'm Kakashi's ninken and I'm gonna make sure you kids find your friend. Don't expect me to fight tho,"

…

Shujinko didn't know what was more ridiculous: That there was a talking Pug right in front of him or the fact that this talking Pug was going to help them reach Sasuke. He could understand being guided by a fully grown dog that could fight back if necessary, but a Pug? Seriously? "Kakashi-sensei, I don't mean no disrespect, but are you sure this puppy is gonna be of help? It doesn't look that dangerous to me,"

"WOOF!" Without any warning, Pakkun jumped and buried his small but sharp teeth into Shujinko's hand, who started shrieking like a banshee.

"AAAAAAAAAARRGH! GET OFF ME, YOU STUPID MUTT! GET OF MEEEEE!" he shouted as he tried to throw the dog away, but regardless of how hard he shook his arm, Pakkun refused to let go. Eventually, the ninken opened his mouth and allowed Shujinko to have his hand back.

"That's what you get for calling me a cute puppy," Pakkun stated. The dog's voice remained as calm as ever.

"Cute? I never said you were cute! In fact, I think you're one ugly flea sack," Shujinko retorted childishly, a small tear going down his cheek as he held his injured hand. It was all red and swollen, and Pakkun's teeth were clearly marked on his skin. He could easily become a victim of an infection.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked drowsily, having woken up from the Genjutsu just a minute ago. He would've laughed at the scene had it not been for the strange situation he found himself in. Shikamaru was also awake by now.

Kakashi told Sakura to repeat what he just said to Naruto before leaving with Gai to repel the horde of enemies that were attacking Konoha. Sakura briefly informed Naruto and Shikamaru on what was happening and how they had to find Sasuke, who was chasing after Gaara somewhere outside the village. The Uzumaki quickly digested the news and immediately set up to find Sasuke, for there was no way he was gonna let the Uchiha go against the Ichibi Jinchuriki alone. Even Shikamaru, who absolutely hated finding himself in these sort of situations, was willing to join the search team.

As they stepped outside the building, Shujinko stopped dead in his track. With all the hysteria going on, he forgot about one thing.

"Come on, Shujinko! What are you waiting for?!" Naruto called out as he, Sakura, Pakkun and Shikamaru also stopped.

"You guys go ahead! I need to make sure of something first!" Shujinko shouted back as he started running in the opposite direction. "Don't worry about me, I'll catch up with you as soon as I can!"

"What a drag, what is he planning on doing?" Shikamaru asked as the figure of Shujinko running towards the village became less visible by the second.

"Whatever it is, we don't have time to wait for him," Pakkun said. "Come on, pups. We have a job to do. I'm sure he'll come back eventually,"

* * *

Shujinko was running through the streets of Konoha as if his life depended on it. As he turned his head left and right, he saw bodies lying still on the ground, like passed out drunkards after drinking way too much sake in one night. Deep inside, he knew perfectly well that they were dead, but the adrenaline and the will to survive helped him not thinking about it.

His family was in danger. Well, at least Nanami and Masumi were. Daichi was out of the village because of a meeting he had with one of his long-time business partners. His mother and sister were supposed to go to the Arena and watch Shujinko earn his Chunin rank, but last night Nanami suffered from a mild fever that forced her to stay in bed, and obviously Masumi had to take care of her, so in the end, none of his family members were able to attend the third exam.

Shujinko started to panic. What if one of the invaders raided his home and attacked either one of them? What if his mother left the house just before the invasion began? What if Nanami decided to face a shinobi from Sunagakure or Otogakure, thinking it was her duty as a kunoichi in training? The mere thought was terrifying and it pressured him to run even faster, reaching levels of speed that he never expected to come across.

He had to constantly be on the lookout for any enemy attacks coming near his way. Most of the shinobis were fighting on the rooftops or in the forest outside of the village, but it wasn't uncommon to see ninjas battling for their lives out there on the streets. There were a ton of shinobi tools all over the place.

His eyes widened when he caught sight of an exploding tag on fire stuck to an abandoned wooden wagon in the marketplace… which was placed dangerously close to him.

BOOOOM

The sheer force of the explosion sent Shujinko several meters back, bouncing three times before his face crashed against the concrete wall of a tower on the opposite side of the street.

The Ozuma lost consciousness for a couple of seconds before coming back to the painful reality. His tongue felt something strange, and he was surprised when he spat out a mouthful of blood, staining the ground and his shirt. His clothes were a mess, too. His white shirt was now dirty with dust from the ground while the sleeves of his brown pants were torn and full of holes.

But above all, it was his right calf what was killing him. When Shujinko looked at his leg, he found a thick piece of wood stuck into his calf. 'Could've been my heart,' he thought as he grabbed the huge splinter and tried to pull it out, but the second he attempted to remove it, an excruciating pain took place and he was unable to hold back a whimper. It didn't help that his head was hurting like crazy, either.

Taking a deep breath and holding back tears of pain, Shujinko grabbed the piece of wood and used all of his strength to pull it out, howling like a wounded wolf. The brown-haired boy threw the bloodstained splinter away and used a kunai to rip a part of his shirt, making an improvised bandage for his injury. Hopefully, it would last long enough before he could find proper medical implements.

Feeling somewhat disoriented, the Ozuma got up and resumed his journey home. He winced every time he applied weight on his right leg, aware of the trail of blood he was leaving behind. The pain forced him to stop running and even jogging became a difficult task, but there was no way in hell he would walk in a situation like this.

Finally, after crossing the market district while hiding from any would-be opponents, Shujinko managed to reach his house. Without preambles, he knocked the door down and grabbed a kunai just in case he encountered an unwanted stranger. "Kaa-san! Nanami!"

"Onii-chan!" Nanami shouted as she got out of a closet in the kitchen, followed by her mother. In Konoha, there was a specific alarm that sounded all throughout the village in case of emergency. The moment the two girls heard the alarm, they immediately went to hide, not even bothering to take a look outside. They both hugged Shujinko so hard he thought his lungs were about to collapse. Masumi looked at her son with horror.

"Dear Kami, what happened to you?! Are you injured?!"

"Kaa-san, I'm fine. There's nothing to worry ab-"

"Nothing to worry about?! You're bleeding, son!"

As Masumi left in search of the medic kit, Shujinko grabbed a piece of glass and looked at his reflection. There was a cut just slightly over his left eyebrow that was bleeding a lot. Due to the adrenaline, he never noticed the pain up until now. There was also another thing he never noticed up until now…

His headband was gone.

"My… My headband!"

"Forget your headband, there are more important things to care about!"

Masumi opened the little box and took a bottle of alcohol, some cotton, and clean bandages. She applied some alcohol into the cotton and started cleaning Shujinko's wound. The golden-eyed boy winced as the liquid immediately reacted upon contact with his skin, killing any possible bacteria that could infect the cut and worsen the injury. Then, she wrapped the bandages around his head while still applying pressure against the piece of cotton that covered the gash. The same procedure was done to treat the injury on his calf.

Meanwhile, Nanami simply stared at the scene, shocked out of her mind. She had never seen her brother in such a bad shape before. Sure, she was used to see Shujinko returning from a training session with a few bruises here and there, but this was a whole different thing. To her, Shujinko was like an unbeatable fighter who simply couldn't lose, regardless of who he faced. Thinking that someone had done that to him was like a splash of cold water, and the more she realized her brother wasn't invincible, the more terrified she became.

"Thanks, kaa-san," Shujinko said once Masumi was done. "I have to go now. If I stay here, I'll just put you two in danger. Go back into hiding and wait for the invasion to stop,"

"Are you insane?! You can't be thinking of going outside, it's too dangerous!" Masumi shrieked.

"Kaa-san, I have to! Everyone is out there risking their lives for the village and I refuse to stay here doing nothing! Those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum, and right now, my teammates need my help. Don't worry, I promise to come back as soon as I can,"

But before he could leave the house, Nanami grabbed his hand as hard as she could. "Onii-chan, please don't go! I don't want you to get hurt! What if… What if a bad person does something to you?" Unable to hold back the tears, the youngest of the Ozuma siblings started crying. "Onii-chan, I'm scared. I don't want to be alone. I want you to be here. Please, please stay. I'll do whatever you want, but please stay!"

Shujinko was deeply touched by Nanami's pleas, but there was no room for discussion. He was a shinobi of Konohagakure, and just like any other shinobi, he had to aid his village in times of need. Sure, he could stay here and avoid having to put his life on the line, but just like Neji understood after Hiashi revealed to him the truth behind his father's death, it wasn't fate what determined the value of a ninja, but by the choices that he made. It was time for him to act.

"Chibi-chan, look at me. I know you're scared. Heck, I'm a bit scared too. But being scared is not an excuse to sit back and let the others do the job. You can be scared and still be brave enough to stand up for your comrades, and that's exactly what I'm gonna do. Do you understand now? I have to do my part and protect Konoha. I have to trust in the Will of Fire,"

"Th-The Wi-ill of Fire? What's that, onii-chan?"

Shujinko grinned. "I'll explain it to you once I get back. For now, just stay here and protect kaa-san. She won't be scared any more if neither one of her sons are, get it? Don't leave the house unless you're told to. Trust me, everything is gonna be okay. Onii-chan here will make sure of that,"

Masumi was about to protest, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to do it. Her son was right. As a mother, it was her duty to comfort and reassure her children, not the other way around. She was worried about Shujinko, that was for certain, but she also trusted her son and knew he wouldn't do anything reckless, especially when he promised his sister he would come back at any costs. Besides, she knew how stubborn her son was, and no amount of warnings from her part would change his mind. In the end, all she could do was to nod and wait for the outcome of this disaster. "Take care, Shujinko. I believe in you,"

The brown-haired boy was taken aback, expecting an outburst of tears and sobs. It felt so good that Masumi not only understood him but also approved of his decision (at least to a degree). He was determined to answer to that trust by making sure he would survive no matter what.

* * *

"It's useless. They are right behind our tail," Pakkun said while sniffing the air. Sakura, Naruto and Shikamaru were following behind, jumping from one branch to another. The ninken had already warned them about a group of eight shinobis that were following them. They tried to cover their trails to the best of their abilities given the circumstances, but these were Oto ninjas carefully selected by Orochimaru himself, and there was no chance in hell they would be fooled by a couple of Genins and a dog.

"What a drag. How did I get involved in this? I just wanted to go home and watch the clouds," the Nara complained, much to everyone's annoyance.

"Not now, Shikamaru!" Naruto yelled. "If we don't hurry up, they'll catch us!"

"They're going to catch us regardless of how fast we go. Don't you see it? It's three Genins and a dog against a full squad of Jounin-level shinobis. Our mission is to make sure Sasuke is okay, and that's not going to happen if we're too busy watching over our shoulder all the time… We need a distraction,"

Sakura blinked. "A distraction? But we already tried to cover our trails! It clearly didn't work!"

"I'm not talking about covering our trails," Shikamaru explained. "At this point, the only thing that will buy us some time is an ambush. Since our persecutors are under the leadership of a rogue ninja that used to be part of Konoha, I have to assume that they know the territory almost as well as we do, which means that it's practically useless to try and mislead them. The only viable option right now is a direct attack against them,"

The words that came out of Shikamaru's words made perfect sense. They were all well aware that it was going to be impossible to outrun a fresh group of experienced shinobis. However, things weren't as simple as they seemed. After years of helping Kakashi in numerous occasions, Pakkun knew exactly the kind of risks that implied being on the run… and the sort of sacrifices that had to be made. The ninken already knew where Shikamaru was going, and needless to say, his two friends were not going to like it.

"And how are we supposed to chase after Sasuke and fight those guys at the same time? Gaara and his brothers are way ahead of us, believe it!"

"You're not getting it, Naruto. It's not about fighting them, it's about delaying them. One of us has to stay behind and face Orochimaru's henchmen while the rest goes after Sasuke. In other words, if we want this ambush to work, one of us has to become a..."

"… A decoy," Sakura whispered.

The three Genins stopped dead in their tracks. Both Naruto and Sakura were so shocked and appalled by the idea of leaving behind one of their own that they couldn't even think of a way to counter Shikamaru's argument. "It's the only way. We need Pakkun if we want to find Sasuke, so doggie here is out of the question, which means… that I'm the one who should do it,"

"You?! Quit messing around, Shikamaru! This isn't the time to play hero!" the Uzumaki shouted, not out of anger or frustration, but rather out of concern.

"Trust me, playing hero is not my thing. In fact, I think it's a complete and utter drag. But we have to use our heads and be realistic. It's better than all of us going down together. And besides, one of the purposes of the Kagemane no Jutsu is to stall and paralyze enemies, which is exactly what we need right now. It's troublesome alright, but the only one here who has any chances of ambushing these shinobis and possibly survive is me,"

Sakura's thoughts and emotions were a mess. She felt so many things at once that her intuitive and sharp mind was almost numb. She felt relieved, relieved to know that she wasn't going to be the decoy. She felt conflicted, conflicted by the fact that she should've at least volunteered to go. She felt angry, angry at herself for knowing that even if she were the decoy, she wouldn't be of much help. She felt amazed, amazed by Shikamaru's sudden determination and selfishness. All of these emotions left her speechless.

Naruto was fighting with himself. He knew he had to find Sasuke before it was too late, but leaving Shikamaru behind was a tough thing to deal with. If something bad happened to Shikamaru, Naruto wouldn't know if he could ever forgive himself, especially when Kakashi taught him about the importance of never abandoning one's teammates regardless of the circumstances. Technically speaking, he wasn't abandoning Shikamaru, but it certainly felt like it.

There was no time to waste. Knowing that the Nara had already made up his mind, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki hardened his gaze and raised his voice. "Alright, we're counting on you, Shikamaru. Good luck out there," he then looked at Sakura. "Come on, Sakura-chan. Let's go,"

Sakura meekly nodded and followed Naruto, looking over her shoulder all the way as Shikamaru quickly ran the opposite way until disappearing among the trees. 'I never thought I would see Shikamaru like this. He's almost a completely different person,' "Naruto, do you think Shikamaru will be okay?"

"Don't worry about him, Sakura-chan. Shikamaru may be a lazy bum, but he's more than capable of dealing with a bunch of clowns. I'm sure he'll be fine,"

…

'… Shikamaru, you better come back from this one. I'll be waiting for you,'

* * *

"It is such a shame to see you like this, Sarutobi-sensei," Orochimaru said with a twisted smile that would make anyone want to puke out of disgust. The two shinobis that used to be teacher and student were on the rooftop of the stadium, surrounded by the Shishienjin, a square barrier made from purple flames that incinerated whoever tried to touch it, meaning that the Hokage could not receive help from the exterior. "Look at yourself. Old, weary… and weak. To think that the one who was once called 'The Professor' and acknowledged by all of the shinobi world would become nothing but a fragile relic of the past. It almost makes me feel sorry for you,"

Orochimaru's taunts, as provocative as they were, were not short of truth. Hiruzen was way past his prime and he knew it. As a matter of fact, he had spent the last few weeks getting ready to pass the Hokage title to someone else and join the Council once the Chunin Exams were done. Besides, years of peace and prosperity had taken its toll on his abilities.

"Is this what you want, Orochimaru? Is this what you worked for all of the time since you left? To see the village burnt to the ground along with its people?"

A small laugh escaped from the Sannin's lips. "Of course not. Well, maybe. I am determined to spread change and uncertainty wherever I can. To remain stationary is to defy chaos, the natural order of this world. There is no such thing as a structured and defined reality, after all,"

Ever since he was a child, Orochimaru was obsessed with what was unknown to him. As he grew up, he kept pushing and pushing the boundaries through extensive research, addicted to the forbidden taste that only the darkness could give him.

His ambition became evident to those who knew him, and when Hiruzen chose Minato over his own student to become the Yondaime Hokage, it all became clear for Orochimaru. The village was holding him back. Konoha's authorities were blindfolded by their own sense of morality and no one was willing to take risks for the sake of discovery. Danzo was no exception, for he only worked with Orochimaru in order to achieve what he thought was best for the village, and would try to get rid of him the moment he stopped perceiving the Sannin as a 'necessary evil'.

And now, after years of isolation, unscrupulous experimentation, and less than unethical life decisions, this is what he had become: A half-human obsessed with immortality and the knowledge of every existing jutsu who suffered from a God complex. In fact, he was so convinced of his godliness that he searched for a power that was never supposed to be used by humans, and now, he was about to commit one of nature's worst crimes.

"Enough talk. This day will be your last, Sarutobi-sensei. And since your death is imminent, it might as well involve more than just your student," Clapping his hands together, Orochimaru raised his voice. "Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei!"

Two large coffins emerged from the ground in such a way that Hiruzen couldn't do anything about it. Orochimaru didn't even bother to hide his twisted grin, eager to watch the look on his former teacher's face once he realized who were the ones he summoned. The ANBU members outside the barrier had never seen anything similar in their lives before, and their cold and calculating minds couldn't begin to imagine what was about to happen.

With a loud CREAK noise, the doors of the two coffins opened at the same time, revealing two standing corpses. They both wore ancient war armors, one of them red, the other one blue. Hiruzen's heart almost stopped once he recognized the individuals in front of him. A small tear ran down his wrinkled cheek.

"Hashirama-sama… Tobirama-sensei..."

"… Saru-chan, you have gotten old," The Nidaime Hokage stated. "I was not expecting to see you under these circumstances,"

Tobirama's voice was extremely detached from emotion, and yet he was clearly aware of what was going on. His cracked face and empty eyes stripped him of all humanity, and the same went to Hashirama, who looked at his younger brother. "This is not the Afterworld. Why are we here, Tobirama?"

"We have been summoned by that deplorable scoundrel behind our backs, nii-san. To think that someone would use my own jutsu to bring us back to the world of the living and make us fight against our own student and fellow Hokage… This is unforgivable,"

"Now, now, I summoned you to help me fight Sarutobi-sensei, not so you can catch up with the current events over a cup of tea," Orochimaru said while shoving a kunai with a special talisman attached to its end into the skull of both Hokages. "Don't be sad. You three will have plenty to talk about once Sarutobi-sensei is dead and your souls are back in the land of the dead,"

"Saru-chan, in our current condition, we are unable to control our bodies or act on our free will. We must fight you now… I apologize," Tobirama said.

The Sandaime Hokage shook his head. "No, I am the one who should apologize. I was so blinded by my own feelings that I allowed one of my students to become what he is today. This is my fault and my fault only… And now, it is my duty as Hokage to stop you from destroying Konohagakure, the village that you two created and loved while you were alive,"

With nothing left to say, Hiruzen charged against his two former teachers. The Battle of the Hokages had just begun.

* * *

Aaaaaand that's the end of chapter 31.

Hopefully, I managed to pull this one alright. It's the start of the invasion, and while I want to highlight Shujinko and what role he plays, I also feel the end to show other important scenes were he's not involved. There's so much going on right now. Sasuke is chasing Gaara and his siblings, Naruto and Sakura are chasing Sasuke, Shikamaru decided to stay behind, Shujinko is back in the game, and Hiruzen has to deal with both Orochimaru and the first two Hokages. I feel it would be dumb to just show what Shujinko is doing and ignore everything else.

By the way, I know some of you are disappointed because Shujinko never got to participate in the third exam. Don't worry, you'll see plenty of Shujinko in the next chapter, including an epic fight which is already under development.

Another thing I want to clarify: I never bought the idea that Sasuke was able to become almost as fast as Lee just by copying his moves and training for a month. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever. Lee worked on his speed for years (at least more than one) and that's why he moves so fast without his weights. The Sharingan can copy your opponent's moves, not his speed. On the other hand, it has been proved that you can use chakra to run faster (Sakura did this in the anime during her fight with Ino). This is why, for the sake of making the series more believable, I have decided that Sasuke must combine physical prowess with chakra control in order to achieve the speed necessary to perform the Chidori.

Glossary

Chidori - One Thousand Birds

Kagemane no Jutsu - Shadow Possession Jutsu

Shishienjin - Ninja Art: Four Flames Formation

Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei - Summoning Jutsu: Reanimation

That's it for now. I really hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to Review, Favorite & Follow for more.

Ja ne!


	32. Chapter 32 (part 4)

**CHAPTER 32: THE THIRD EXAM (PART 4) / AGAINST THE SAND SIBLINGS**

* * *

(Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking/Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

" **Demonic voice"**

 _Letter_

* * *

"Come on, Gaara. You have to wake up," Kankuro muttered as he and Temari carried their unconscious brother through the forest.

The invasion suffered a severe change of plans the moment Sasuke injured Gaara to death while they were fighting. The Ichibi Jinchuriki was supposed to reveal its true form in the middle of the village once the Chunin Exams were done, recreating the terror and the destruction that the Kyuubi brought forth more than twelve years ago. However, that option was no longer available to them since Gaara was in terrible shape and couldn't fight back, at least for the moment. So now, all they could do was to keep Gaara safe while he recovered.

This was an extremely dangerous thing to do due to Gaara's unstable nature. The Ichibi was already screwing with Gaara's psyche, and once he woke up, he might not recognize his siblings, let alone be willing to continue with the plan. Under normal circumstances, this would be considered a suicidal move, but then again, this was no normal circumstances, and both Kankuro and Temari had to do their part.

Temari looked at the wound on her brother's chest. To say the very least, it was worrying. This was the first time Gaara was hurting this badly, and after what he went through during his encounter with Rock Lee at the Preliminaries, that was saying something. Deep inside, she knew Gaara was going to survive, but there was no way he would go back to his normal-self (which wasn't even normal by common standards).

"Temari, look!"

Gaara's older siblings stopped. There was someone standing not too far away from them, holding a kunai with his thumb and index fingertips.

It was the Uchiha brat.

"This is as far as you go," Sasuke stated, smirking ever so slightly.

Kankuro gritted his teeth in frustration, cursing the irony of the situation. Almost ever since his childhood, Kankuro was glad to be away from his bloodthirsty maniac of a brother. And now, the one and only time that he actually needed Gaara to protect them (by focusing his violence towards Sasuke and not his brothers, that is), he was unconscious and losing blood.

"Damn it," Temari cursed. "This is just what we needed right now,"

Without preambles, Kankuro grabbed Karasu and took a step forward. "Temari, take care of Gaara and get out of here. I'll be facing this guy,"

"Not so fast. You'll have to deal with me first..."

* * *

"Well, isn't this a surprise," Pakkun said as Naruto and Sakura's ears perked up. "Your friend actually managed to catch up with Sasuke,"

Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait, are you talking about Shikamaru?"

"Of course not, you dummy. The other one, the one who's hand I took a bite of for calling me a puppy,"

"Shujinko!?" Sakura exclaimed in shock. "But how? He's supposed to be way behind us at this point,"

"Well, he did say he was going to come back after finishing whatever business he had. And now that I think about it, while we were trying to get rid of those Oto ninjas that were following us, we had to take a huge detour in order to avoid leading them to Sasuke, so there's also that," Pakkun made a pause to sniff the air, noticing another presence that, up until this point, was unrecognizable to him. "There's someone close to him. I don't know how or why, but whoever it is… It's not a normal human being. Come on, let's hurry!"

* * *

"Temari, take care of Gaara and get out of here. I'll be facing this guy,"

"Not so fast. You'll have to deal with me first..."

Everyone looked to the left. It was Shujinko, who was standing on top of a branch of a tree nearby, looking intensely at the Sand Siblings.

Shujinko's outfit wasn't the same as before. Due to the explosion at the marketplace, most of his clothes were torn apart and filled with holes. Not to mention, he had to cut his already mangled t-shirt in order to make bandages out of it. Even though he knew he didn't have much time left, Shujinko refused to go out and fight wearing pretty much nothing but his boxers, so he changed his attire really quick before leaving his house. He was now wearing black ANBU-like pants with bandages covering his right calf and a long-sleeved fishnet mesh shirt under a sleeveless, zipped, beige leather jacket with black edges. His missing headband was replaced by bandages used to cover the cut on his left eyebrow.

"Took you long enough to get here," Sasuke said out loud. "How did you find us?"

"Let's just say a small beetle was kind enough to show me a shortcut," Shujinko replied sarcastically, very similar to a wizard saying 'A wizard never reveals his tricks'. In that moment, Temari placed Gaara's arm over her shoulders and escaped the scene, hating to leave Kankuro behind but also knowing that it was necessary. "Sasuke, don't worry about me. I can handle this guy by myself. We were supposed to fight each other in the Chunin Exams, we might as well settle the score right here, right now,"

The Uchiha snorted. "You sound pretty confident… Do as you wish,"

"Oh no, you don't!" Kankuro shouted as he began chasing after the retreating figure of Sasuke, but he was immediately stopped by Shujinko, who jumped away from the branch he was standing on and positioned himself in front of Kankuro.

"I already told you, you're going against me. If you really think that I'm just gonna let you pass without a fight, then you're even crazier than your brother,"

Out of the blue, Kankuro started chuckling. His laughter wasn't worthy of a psychopath or anything like that, but it sure was dark and somewhat sinister. "You're a fool. You're all fools. Even if you beat me, there's nothing you can do to defeat Gaara. Once the beast inside of him is released, you will all know what true terror looks like,"

Shujinko knew what Kankuro was trying to do: Psychological warfare. He wanted to scare him and get him all distracted so he could deal with him easily and return to Gaara. That was not going to happen. As long as he figured out a way to take out his puppet while avoiding it, everything would be fine. Taking a deep breath, Shujinko clapped his palms together and called for the power of nature. "Karura Tensei," he whispered.

Kankuro's gaze hardened. Despite being confident and even a bit cocky at times, he was far from being stupid. He saw Shujinko's fight with Kabuto and the sort of thing he could do to an opponent. From what he had seen, he was dealing with someone who was more than proficient in short-medium range combat with a wind affinity when it came to Ninjutsu. 'Therefore, as long as I keep my distance and avoid getting too close to him, I have this match in the bag,' "Kugutsu no Jutsu! Karasu!"

The bandages wrapped around Karasu started twirling until none of them were left, revealing a three-eyed, four-armed humanoid with jagged teeth and spiky brown hair. Quite honestly, it was grotesque. 'So that's his puppet, huh? I can feel his chakra going through the threads. I'm sure I can cut the threads to stop Kankuro's chakra flow, but it's definitely not gonna be easy. A direct attack against Karasu would be pointless. That thing must have weapons hidden inside, according to that book Aoba-sensei gave me. Maybe I can evade the puppet and attack the puppeteer, but it's too risky… There's no other choice. I need a distraction,'

"Here I come!" Kankuro shouted. Two blades came out of Karasu's first set of hands and the puppet shot itself straight towards Shujinko, who was slightly caught off guard but managed to jump out of the way just in time.

"Got you!"

While Shujinko was still suspended in mid-air, Karasu was already moving its head and pointing at the Ozuma's trajectory. The puppet opened its mouth and shot two knives that landed on Shujinko's chest and stomach. Kankuro grinned viciously at the sight. "Take that, you insolent ga-"

POOF

The grin on the puppeteer's face dropped rather quickly when he saw Shujinko's body transforming into a log of wood that fell to the ground. 'Of course. Kawarimi no Jutsu. He had it planned from the beginning,' he thought as he started looking at his surroundings. 'Where's that little twerp hiding?'

The increasing sound of sharp metal piercing the air reached Kankuro's ears and he instinctively moved back, followed by Karasu. Four shurikens ended up encrusted in the tree's bark near the spot where he was standing on five seconds ago. He looked to his right, backtracking the trajectory of the weapons, and found Shujinko on another tree branch several yards away.

'That was a close one,' Shujinko thought, feeling small drops of sweat starting to come out from his forehead. 'It was a good idea to have the Kawarimi no Jutsu ready beforehand. That thing would've killed me,'

"Nice try, but you're gonna need more than that if you want to get past Karasu,"

"Don't worry, I'm just getting warmed up. That disgusting puppet of yours isn't gonna protect you forever," As soon as he finished his sentence, Shujinko started weaving hand signs before extending his palms. "Fuuton: Daitoppa!"

Shujinko released a powerful gust of wind directly at Kankuro, who quickly positioned Karasu in front of him so that the puppet could take the impact of the jutsu. Kankuro wasn't concerned about his puppet. Karasu was very durable and could receive direct attacks from Temari's fan and still work just fine. However, he needed to stand still and tense his chakra threads if he wanted to use Karasu as a shield. 'As soon as his jutsu is finished, I'll use Karasu's hidden poison. That kid will never see it coming,'

But the Ozuma was far from being done. He retrieved his left hand and started pumping chakra to his right palm so that the jutsu could continue. With his free hand, he reached for his back pouch and grabbed a small fishnet bag filled with smoke bombs, throwing it into the ongoing gust of wind and hitting Karasu's face.

The outcome of Shujinko's strategy was epic. The impact of the smoke bombs and Karasu created a huge cloud of smoke that forced Kankuro to shield his eyes with his forearm. Even though regular smoke bombs didn't deteriorate one's eyesight, the combination of the intensity of Shujinko's wind jutsu with the amount of smoke bombs he threw at once resulted in the puppeteer instinctively covering his vision. 'Damn it! I can't aim at him properly! I need to get out of here,' Kankuro thought before jumping backward several times.

Once the smoke had dissipated and the jutsu had come to an end, Kankuro opened his eyes and started looking for Shujinko, but the golden-eyed boy was nowhere to be seen. Annoyed by how things were going, the puppeteer decided to use alternative tactics. "Oi, gaki. We're not playing hide and seek. This is a real fight. I didn't know Konohagakure raised their ninjas to become wimpy little pushovers. Get out from wherever you are and face me like a true shinobi… If you have the guts, that is,"

Kankuro's taunts were another form of psychological warfare, one used mainly on Genins with hero tendencies. In reality, shinobis were supposed to do exactly the opposite of what Kankuro was proposing. They had to hide their presence and attack the enemy's blind spot both swiftly and effectively. But of course, some Genins like Naruto tended to forget that and attacked whoever it was that they had in front of them directly, like a bull chasing after the color red.

And it worked just like a charm. Just a few seconds after, Shujinko was behind his back, holding a kunai close to his neck. "Don't move. This battle is over,"

At first, Kankuro was silent. But then, he started making a strange noise, something similar to a slow cackle, but much more intimidating. All of this was happening while small pieces of Kankuro's face began to fall.

All of a sudden, Kankuro's head did a complete 180. His face was replaced by a demonic, non-human expression with three googly eyes formed in a triangular pattern. A second pair of arms came out, ripping two holes in Kankuro's clothes and instantly imprisoning Shujinko, whose feet left the ground.

When Shujinko opened his eyes again, he was staring directly at Karasu.

"You're right, this battle is over… for you," said a triumphant Kankuro all the way from the spot where his puppet used to be. He looked normal, except that now he was wearing Karasu's dirty and outworn poncho on top of his outfit. "Oh, you didn't know, right? I can use the Kawarimi no Jutsu to switch positions with my puppet. It's extremely handy and it catches people off guard, just like you,"

Karasu started crushing Shujinko's body, slowly but surely. He could feel his rib cage compressing, and it wasn't going to be long before he could hear the sound of his bones crackings. To top it all up, there was a small, sharp needle that was stabbing him just above his hip near his belly button.

"You're not half bad, gaki. I'll give you that. But you still have a long way to go before challenging us grown-ups. Now, let's see how you like being crushed to death,"

…

Kankuro frowned heavily as he looked at his puppet, which all of a sudden became still. He repeated the required finger movements to control Karasu three times, but nothing was happening. 'What on Earth is going on? Why isn't Karasu responding? I've done this move hundreds of times before, it's one of my favorite techniques! Why can't I pull it off?'

POOF

Shujinko was suddenly covered in a white cloud. At first, Kankuro thought the Ozuma had used the Kawarimi no Jutsu a second time… But then, the smoke cleared out.

"You… You're the bug boy!"

Indeed, it was none other than Aburame Shino.

Kankuro desperately tried to control Karasu, but he simply couldn't. His chakra threads were extremely tense, as if threatening to cut themselves in half. The puppet master could barely move his fingertips.

"It is of no use," Shino said with a weary voice. "You are only feeding them,"

Once he looked at his chakra threads more closely, Kankuro understood what was going on, and yet he refused to believe it. His chakra threads were covered with little bugs that ate his chakra. That was why Karasu wasn't responding, because Kankuro's chakra was failing to reach the puppet thanks to Shino's bugs.

"Were you looking for me!?"

Kankuro's jaw dropped when he saw the real Shujinko coming down from the top of a tree, carrying a giant shuriken using both of his hands.

"No! Don't you dare!"

"Haaaaaaaa!" Using all of his strength, Shujinko threw the shuriken. The weapon, five times bigger than its normal version, pierced through the air with a loud SWOOOSH sound and severed Kankuro's chakra threads like they were nothing before getting lost somewhere in the woods. The second brother of the Sand Siblings watched in horror how his puppet became inactive and released its grip on Shino, who fell helplessly to his knees while covering his bloody wound with one hand.

Shujinko was very lucky to find Shino on his way to the forest. They were both searching for Sasuke, and thanks to the scent released by the bug that was secretly hiding on top of Kankuro's hair (the very same bug that Shino used to spy on him and Temari during the third exam), they were able to find their target in almost no time.

The Aburame briefly informed Shujinko of Kankuro's set of skills and abilities based on what Shino saw in the Preliminaries. Together, they developed a strategy in which Shujinko would face Kankuro first and create a distraction. Meanwhile, Shino would follow them as quietly as possible, using the Henge no Jutsu to impersonate the Ozuma and trick the puppeteer into thinking that he had the upper hand.

And when did Shino and Shujinko exchanged roles? Simple. Shujinko didn't throw all of those smoke bombs just to cover his escape. It was also the signal for Shino to step up and allow himself to get caught by Karasu. And while he was being crushed by the puppet, Shino carefully released hundreds of chakra-eating bugs that distorted the chakra threads, making it impossible for Kankuro to deliver the killing blow and leaving his threads unprotected.

'I can't believe it… I just got tricked by a brat...' Kankuro refused to come to terms with what had just taken place in front of his eyes. He went from having his finger pulling the trigger to being virtually unarmed in less than a heartbeat.

Shujinko, who landed on top of a tree branch close to Kankuro, pulled out a kunai and smirked. "Let's see how tough you are without your favorite toy,"

Kankuro growled and pulled out a kunai of his own. Just because he couldn't use Karasu didn't mean he was done for. At the same time, he knew that he was at a disadvantage as he didn't particularly excel at knife battles or Taijutsu. But despite all of that, he was not going to surrender. He would rather die first. "Bring it on, then!"

CLANG

CLANG

CLANG CLANG

CLANG

CLANG CLANG

The sound of metal clashing against metal became more and more often as the two Genins fought one another, and this time, it was Shujinko who had the high ground by a clear mark. Kankuro could only defend himself from Shujinko's fast and precise approaches. As for the golden-eyed boy, he was still in Sage Mode, and he could easily counterattack and almost predict Kankuro's moves.

TWING

In a desperate attempt to finish the fight, Kankuro pulled back his dominant arm and tried to stab Shujinko, who capitalized on his enhanced reflexes and used the ring attached to the end of his weapon to stop Kankuro's kunai and disarm him by twisting his wrist, forcing him to drop the weapon. He immediately grabbed both of his enemy's hands so that he couldn't use them and looked at him straight in the eye. "Now!"

A blurry figure approached Kankuro from behind. The last thing Kankuro saw before he was knocked unconscious was a shinobi boot with his name on it.

BAAM

An exact replica of Shujinko kicked the puppeteer hard enough to send him flying. The kick was so brutal that it loosened almost half of Kankuro's set of teeth. The oldest of the Sand Siblings was lucky enough to land on a set of soft bushes that cushioned his fall considerably, but that didn't save him from blacking out. Kankuro was officially out for the count.

"Learning the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu was definitely worth the trouble," Shujinko said out loud, to which his clone smirked at him.

"I know, right? Just imagine what Naruto can do with all the shadow clones he can make,"

Shujinko shifted uncomfortably. 'I'm still not used to having a clone of mine talking back to me. It feels so weird… Where's Shino, by the way?' "… Oh, crap! Shino!"

The brown-haired boy and his clone rushed over to Shino, who looked like he was about to lose whatever balance he had left and fall to the ground. He was resting his back against the tree and his head was constantly going up and down, like a tired child who refused to go to sleep. "Shino, what happened to you? Can you talk to me?" Shujinko asked.

"The puppet… It poisoned me while I was trapped..."

A wave of panic assaulted Shujinko as he saw blood on Shino's jacket. Without thinking twice about it, he helped Shino stand up, grabbed his right arm and placed it over his neck while his clone did the same thing with Shino's left arm. "Don't worry. I'm taking you back to the village. We'll find a medical ninja who can patch you up and you'll be fine. Just hang on for a minute!"

"… My clan compound… It is closer… Take me there..."

Fueled by adrenaline and overwhelmed by the idea of losing a comrade, Shujinko started jumping from branch to branch as fast as he could, pumping a disproportionate amount of chakra to his feet to help with his speed. He cursed himself for not knowing the Shunshin no Jutsu, which would've allowed him to transport Shino and himself almost immediately. He didn't have any medical equipment that could help him, either. The only thing he could do was to jump straightforward and pray to Kami while doing so.

"How are you holding up?" Shujinko asked. "Is it too bad?"

"… The bugs inside my body… They are slowing down the poison… But they cannot hold forever..."

Shino's weary voice made Shujinko gulp, feeling guilty for his friend's delicate situation. It was his idea to use Shino as a distraction while he prepared to cut the chakra threads that controlled Karasu. Was it a necessary move to do? Perhaps, but that didn't change the fact that it was Shino the one who was poisoned, not him. Had it not been for the fact that Shino was a member of the Aburame clan and had insects inside of his body that repelled the effects of the poison to an extent, he would most likely be dead by now. The least he could do was to ensure Shino survived the encounter, otherwise, he would have to bear with the consequences of his decision and live with the fact that he played a role in Shino's demise. Shujinko shook his head vigorously and focused on getting to the Aburame compound as soon as possible. "Whatever it takes, I'm not letting you die, Shino. Did you hear me? I just need you to resist a little longer,"

"… Do not blame yourself… for my current state… We are shinobis… We are expected to make sacrifices… for the sake of our village..."

"Forget about the village! This has nothing to do with that!" Shujinko snapped. "I'm the one who put you at risk just so we could deal with Kankuro. It's my fault for not thinking of a better strategy or a better way to do things. One way or another, we're gonna get through this. I promise you,"

It was only when he finished that Shujinko realized what he just said, and he was baffled by his own words.

Ever since he was a child, Shujinko only made promises that he knew he could keep. He set what he deemed to be realistic goals for himself, and did everything in his power to reach those goals. He always tried to maintain a realistic perspective on things, and rarely said or promised anything driven by emotions only. His fear of failure was a big factor as he didn't want to be seen as a liar or an underachiever. In summary, he always played it safe when it came to making promises.

However, that didn't seem to be the case anymore. He promised Shino he would survive as if he had the power to decide who lived and who died. He also promised Nanami he would come back as if he knew for certain he was going to get through this chaotic mess. Why? Why was he so keen on promising things that were, in some shape or form, beyond his reach? Was it a way to assure others? Was it a way to assure himself? He didn't know anymore. What he did know is that, now that he actually gave his word to both Shino and Nanami, he had to do everything he could and more to keep it.

It was incredibly frustrating to see nothing but trees and leaves ahead, even after running and jumping straightforward for miles. Thankfully, his clone was helping him carry Shino, otherwise he doubted he could travel this fast without getting exhausted. Poor Shino could only grunt and wince in pain every time they had to jump. The Aburame was half unconscious by now, and the only thing he could do to tell Shujinko he was still alive was to breath heavily and gasp for air.

"We're getting closer now," Shujinko said as he noticed there were fewer trees around. A lower number of trees usually meant the end of the forest was near. His doubts were clear when, after ten minutes of intense traveling, he saw part of the white wall that surrounded Konoha. Gritting his teeth, Shujinko landed on the ground and started running as fast as his abused legs allowed him to. "Almost there..."

Once he finally got out of the forest and looked at what he had in front of him, he was breathless… and not because he was tired.

There was a massive breach in the wall. It wasn't a hole or anything like that. No, the wall was literally split apart, as if someone had decided to cover the wall with hundreds of exploding tags and activated them at the same time, creating an enormous rupture. There were thousands of rocks and pieces of marble scattered all over the place. What was more, inside the village, there were several buildings and houses that were destroyed, some of them even set on fire. The scene left Shujinko astonished, unable to comprehend what he was witnessing. "What happened here? Who could've done this?"

"I see them! Kurenai-sensei, they're over here!"

Shujinko looked to the right. Both Kiba and Kurenai came seemingly out of nowhere, or maybe Shujinko was far too distracted by the destruction of the village to notice them coming. "Kiba! Kurenai-sensei!"

"I recognized both of your scents a while ago," Kiba said as his facial features sharpened considerably. He was knocked unconscious minutes before the invasion started by a random member of the ANBU, along with Akamaru. Even though both of them were fine now, Akamaru was still unable to wake up, forcing Kiba to leave his ninken inside the Inuzuka compound before returning to the battlefield. "What happened to Shino? His scent is fading away!"

"He's poisoned! I don't know how much time he has left!"

Kurenai immediately took Shino away from Shujinko and his clone and started applying basic Medical Ninjutsu. Her hands started glowing, and when Kurenai said nothing, the Ozuma started panicking, thinking that maybe it was too late for Shino. Fearing for the worst, Shujinko was about to ask her what was going on, but luckily Kurenai finished inspecting Shino and didn't sound that alarmed. "He's still alive, but he's weak. We need to get him to a safe area and get some aid from a team of paramedics. I can't stop the poison on my own,"

"Shino told me to get him to his clan compound," Shujinko said abruptly. "It's supposed to be closer. I-I think they can help him,"

The red-eyed kunoichi nodded and carefully placed Shino's arm over her shoulders. The Aburame clan knew how to deal with poison as they used it frequently along with their bugs. Besides, it was hard to find a medical ninja who wasn't busy treating someone else's injuries at a time like this. "Kiba, follow me. Let me know if someone gets close to us,"

"You got it, Kurenai-sensei!" Kiba replied. The two of them quickly left the scene, leaving Shujinko and his clone behind.

The brown-haired boy could breathe a little easier now that he knew Shino was going to be alright. Well, maybe not that alright, but he was going to survive and that was all that matters. "I should go back to finding Sasuke. I wasted so much time dealing with Kankuro and Shino," Shujinko said to himself.

"Should we get going, then?" Clone Shujinko asked.

"… That reminds me. It's time for you to go. I can't have my clone following me around just like that,"

"Are you serious? You don't know if you're going to need me later on. Can I just stay a little longer?"

The Ozuma sweat-dropped. "Do all Kage Bunshin act like this? Sorry, but I'm the original and I'm calling the shots," and with a single hand gesture, Shujinko dispelled the clone, leaving behind a cloud of white smoke. "Still, I have no idea how to track them do-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Shujinko was forced to drop to his knees, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. His back was killing him and his legs were about to explode. For no apparent reason, he started to sweat profusely, as if he was just done running laps around the village. 'What… What's happening to me? Why do I feel so weak? My head… It's killing me...'

He wasn't overwhelmed or anything like that, but he certainly was tired, more tired than what he was supposed to be. Almost immediately after dispelling the clone, a wave of mental fatigue took over him, and he had no idea where it came from.

Unknowingly to him, it was all because of the jutsu he used. One of the effects of the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu was that, once it was over, all of the experience and knowledge acquired by the shadow clone were transferred back to the original. The sudden outburst of memories caught Shujinko off guard, and since this was his first time using the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, he didn't know how to deal with the aftermath. Aoba never explained to him what came with the use of the jutsu, other than the expensive chakra cost.

"Kinamu-taicho, look!"

Shujinko cursed as he looked up. There were six ninjas from Sunagakure standing close to him, all of them carrying shurikens and kunais. All of them seemed to be in their mid-twenties and had to be at least Jounin level, judging by their flank jackets and their age. The only one who wasn't wearing a flank jacket was a boy who couldn't be much older than Shujinko, definitely not older than fourteen. 'Crap. This is not good,'

"Looks like we found ourselves a lost kitty," one of them said. "Taicho, what should we do with him?"

Kinamu, the leader of the squad, looked at the youngest of his comrades. "Our orders are clear. Renjiro, I want you to do it. Take the shot and get it over with,"

"Ha-Hai!"

Renjiro clumsily took several steps forward and raised his right hand, shakily holding several shurikens between his fingers. It was obvious that he wanted nothing to do with this, but he feared being punished by his superiors for refusing to follow orders. As for Shujinko, his head was somewhat more clear now, but he still couldn't figure a way out of this one. His back was literally against the wall, and he was still tired from having to carry Shino all the way from the forest to the village. What were the chances of him escaping from five Jounin-level shinobis?

"Renjiro, if you don't put him down yourself, I'll deal with both of you!" Kinamu snapped, making his subordinate pale in terror. "Are you scared? Are you a traitor to the village?"

"N-N-No, sir! I swear I'm not a-a traitor!"

"Then take the shot once and for all! DO IT!"

Closing his eyes, Renjiro pulled his arm back. Shujinko's pupils went wide as time seemed to slow down...

* * *

(Back in the forest)

Gaara's situation had escalated far beyond what anyone could've imagined. The red-haired Genin allowed his inner demon to take control over his body, transforming him into a real monster. Gaara's arms, torso, and head were a human-sized version of Shukaku, the horrifying sand spirit. At this point, Temari had given up on her brother and could only watch hopelessly as Gaara went drunk with bloodlust and savagery.

Sasuke was in a bad shape, to say the least. He had already used the Chidori twice and was forced to borrow power from the Curse Mark, despite Kakashi's constant warnings. Half of his body was now covered in black marks, but unlike what happened back in the Forest of Death, he was completely aware of his actions and thoughts. But even with the power boost provided by the Curse Mark, Sasuke had taken serious damage and could barely fight.

Now, if Sasuke was in great danger, Sakura was even more. After putting herself in the middle of the brawl to protect Sasuke, Gaara knocked her out and used some of his sand to attach her body to a tree. The sand tightened its grip on Sakura every passing minute, threatening to crush her bones and kill her unless someone intervened.

Luckily for both of them, Naruto arrived just in time to help. With the use of his clones, the whiskered boy managed to sneak up on Gaara and stick an explosive kunai right up his sandy behind, imitating the technique that Kakashi pulled on him back when Team 7 was facing the bell test. Leaving aside how ridiculous it looked, Naruto's strategy worked out quite nicely. The explosion caught Gaara off guard and his body was unable to absorb all of the damage, ending with the sand monster having one arm and almost half of his face blown away.

"Naruto, listen to me," Sasuke started to say, gaining the attention of his teammate. "You have to… take Sakura and get away from here… as fast as possible..."

"Are you nuts!? You can't take on this guy by yourself and win! Can you please stop being so arrogant all of the time!?" Naruto shouted.

"This isn't about that, usuratonkachi!" the Uchiha replied. "It has nothing to do with me… or with you… It's about saving Sakura… That's all that matters right now..."

"Sasuke..." Naruto whispered in awe, truly astonished by the words of his rival. He never expected Sasuke, out of all people, to openly express concern like that. It was definitely a rarity, a freak occurrence.

Swallowing the pain and the fatigue, Sasuke stood up, his arms hanging from his shoulders. "I should be able to… hold him off… a little longer… Use that time to… get Sakura out of here… and go somewhere safe… If this is the end of the road for me… it just means that… this is as far as I was… meant to go… I already lost my comrades once… as well as those close to me... and I refuse to… let it happen again..."

And in that moment, Naruto understood everything. He understood what Sasuke was saying, but most importantly, he understood where Gaara was coming from and why he became the sorry individual that he was to this day. It wasn't just simple, it was painfully obvious.

"… I get it now. I get why he's so angry and bitter. He never had anyone to rely on, anyone who he could a friend or a comrade. He's just like us, but we were lucky enough to find people that cared for us... and accepted us for what we are. Because he was so alone, he cared only for himself and fought only for himself. I thought… I truly thought he was strong because he could do everything on his own," After saying those words, Naruto closed his eyes and smirked apologetically. "I admit it, I was being an idiot. That's not what true strength is. If you don't fight for anyone else other than yourself, you'll never be strong, no matter what you do!"

The roles were reversed. It was Sasuke who was gawking at Naruto's speech now. What the Uzumaki told him came directly from the heart, that much he could tell. This wasn't the same old Naruto that spew whatever nonsense he came up with just to impress Sakura or to annoy him, and he was about to find out how much Naruto had changed.

"Sasuke, sit back and take it easy for a while. You deserve it. Just leave the rest to Uzumaki Naruto!" and after finishing that sentence, Naruto performed the ram seal and started gathering chakra. Soon, Naruto was surrounded by a blue, fire-like energy that poured out of his body. His training with Jiraiya, along with having Orochimaru's seal removed, allowed the Uzumaki to gain even more access to the nearly unlimited pool of chakra that was inside of him. Sasuke, who was standing next to him, had to shield his eyes from the raw power that was being displayed. "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOFFFFF

The forest was soon overcrowded with, quite literally, two thousand Narutos. Sasuke, Temari, Pakkun, Gamakichi (who Naruto summoned by accident earlier) and even Gaara were left dumbstruck, flabbergasted, stupefied, and just about every other similar adjective. There were so many of them it was enough to make anyone dizzy!

" **What is this? How did you manage to create this many clones?"** Gaara asked as his deformed head looked around.

"Sorry to keep you waiting so long!" the original Naruto said. "It's time to deliver some serious ass-whooping, with an original technique straight from my ninja handbook!"

"YEEEAAAAH!" the rest of the clones cheered.

'What happened to him? Is he… Is he really Naruto?' Sasuke wondered, trying to understand how his teammate was doing all of this. This wasn't the dead-last he grew up ignoring and underestimating. This wasn't the loser that used to pull pranks on the villagers and got into trouble. This wasn't the attention-seeking moron that failed the Academy exam three times in a row.

But he was… and he was showing that, underneath his boisterous and obnoxious behavior, there was a brave, confident and strong shinobi.

"Alright, guys! Let's show this ugly raccoon what we're made of!"

Half of the clones jumped high into the air and threw shurikens at Gaara, unleashing a true storm of sharp metal. Gaara, who was still recovering from the explosion, used his only available arm to cover his face and body as much as he could.

While this happened, the other half of the clones attacked the sand demon from both left and right sides, taking turns to kick and punch the living hell out of Gaara and sending him flying up in the air like a rocket.

"U-ZU-MA-KI Naruto Nisen Rendan!" To finish it off, Naruto and the clones ganged up on Gaara and _obliterated_ him with two thousand punches, sending the poor guy straight to the ground.

BAAM

Gaara's body, which was already disfigured to begin with, was transformed into a near shapeless sand pulp after being on the receiving end of Naruto's brutal clone technique. His face was so distorted that one could barely tell it apart from the rest of his mangled anatomy. Gamakichi, who was watching the fight from a safe distance, blew a whistle. "Oh, boy. That must've hurt,"

' **That strength… Where did it come from… How is it possible… to become so powerful… all of the sudden...'** Gaara mused as he started to lose consciousness.

"Amazing..." Temari whispered. "I can't believe he's winning against Gaara in that form… It's just impossible!"

Even Pakkun, who rarely praised anyone, had to agree. "This is amazing. I've never seen anyone do this sort of thing, not even Kakashi,"

"I hope you liked that, because now you're gonna get two thousand kicks!" Naruto shouted as he and his clones went for the kill. They all jumped down with the intention to beat Gaara senseless and get things done once and for all.

' **No… My existence will not perish… I will not die… Not by your hand… I refuse...' "… I REFUSE TO BE KILLED BY SOMEONE LIKE YOUUUUUU!"**

* * *

Orochimaru hissed as he put all of his efforts into killing the one he once called sensei. In the middle of the fight, Hiruzen managed to catch his student off guard and summoned the Shinigami, the God of Death, to steal his soul. The Snake Sannin counteracted by using his Kusanagi sword to stab Hiruzen from behind through the use of telekinesis. They were now engaged in a battle of endurance, and none of them were going to last much longer.

Enma, the Monkey King, was doing everything he could to stop the Kusanagi sword from further entering Hiruzen's body, even going as far as to grab onto the weapon despite the risk of losing his fingers. "Saru, this is your last chance to kill this bastard! If you don't do this now, he'll destroy all of Konoha! Do you understand!? He'll destroy all of it!"

"You… foolish old man. You don't have the strength to kill me… I can feel it… Just a little longer and the jutsu will undo itself… And your death shall be worthless..." Orochimaru said, feeling how the invisible grasp on his soul was fading away slowly.

"… It is true," the Hokage responded. "I admit it, this old body is not what it used to be. Maybe, if I was ten years younger, this battle would have had a different ending. I was supposed to retire a long time ago," The Snake Sannin smirked arrogantly, thinking that The Professor had finally given up. "...However, I will not allow the village to pay for my mistakes any further. I may not be able to take you with me, but at least I will go down knowing that your thirst for power has been punished… Orochimaru, I am taking away all of your jutsus! Your arms will be sealed… forever!"

"What did you say!?"

In that moment, the Shinigami grabbed the dagger he was holding in his mouth and gave Orochimaru a terrifying glance, as if saying 'your time has come'.

"NO! DON'T YOU DARE…!"

"FUUIN!"

In a blink of an eye, the Shinigami slashed the soul of Orochimaru and swallowed it, along with the soul of the Sandaime. The use of the forbidden technique left a steaming seal on Hiruzen's stomach, a seal that symbolized his soul was now owned by the God of Death until the end of times. As for Orochimaru, his arms turned purple and became as hard as stone.

"Curse you, Sarutobi! How dare you do this to me!? Give me back my jutsus!" Orochimaru screamed in panic, eyes bloodshot and sweating profusely.

The Hokage laughed smoothly, feeling his body and mind going numb. The pain and the exhaustion were gone. It was time for him to go, but not before speaking to his student one last time. "… Orochimaru, you truly are hopeless. You traded your humanity in exchange for an empty life of ambition and madness. My only regret is that I did not kill you before all of this happened… Goodbye..."

The last thing Hiruzen saw before the light escaped from his eyes was a young Orochimaru smiling timidly at him. That was the Orochimaru he wanted to remember, not the one who was desperately throwing insults at him in a fit of rage and denial. The Sarutobi left the world of the living with a bloody smile on his face. The village would live to see another day, and really, that was all he could ask for.

* * *

Aaaaaaand that's the end of chapter 32.

I hope the battle between Shujinko and Kankuro was good enough. Trust me, it's hard to write a decent fight scene with Kankuro because his options as a puppeteer are limited. There's only so much he can do with Karasu. I'm not saying he's weak or anything, he's actually fairly strong. He's just not the kind of character I'm used to including in a battle scene.

I ended up including Shino in the fight for two reasons: A) I needed an explanation for how Shujinko managed to catch up with Sasuke and the Sand Siblings (in case you forgot, there was a hidden bug that Shino used to track them down). B) I needed a reason for Shujinko to come back to the village. I didn't want to have Shujinko beat Kankuro and then become another spectator as soon as Naruto starts fighting Gaara. His presence would serve no purpose other than contributing with unnecessary dialogue.

Some of you may be wondering how Shujinko managed to create a perfect shadow clone when he barely knows how to use them. I admit the scene can be, and most likely is, somewhat far-fetched, but I just didn't want Shujinko to not use the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu after spending so much time and effort learning the damn thing. I'm gonna ask you to cut me some slack here. Oh, and if you want to know why the wall that surrounds Konoha had one huge missing spot, remember that in the anime there was a giant snake summon destroying the village. Jiraiya had to take care of it, if I'm not mistaken.

Well, at least we have one fight out of the way. The Sandaime is dead and Orochimaru can't use his arms now (for the time being, obviously). I don't feel like writing all of the fight between Naruto and Gaara, so I'll probably skip most of it and focus on the important parts. As for Shujinko, well, he's in a tight spot alright. What's gonna happen to him? Find out in the next chapter.

Glossary:

Kugutsu no Jutsu – Puppet Mater Jutsu

Fuuton: Daitoppa – Wind Style: Great Breakthrough

Shunshin no Jutsu – Teleportation Jutsu

Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu – Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu

Uzumaki Naruto Risen Rendan – Naruto 2K Uzumaki Barrage

That'll be all for now. Don't forget to Review, Favorite & Follow the story if you like how things are going. Constructive criticism is always welcomed.

Ja ne!


	33. Chapter 33 (part 5)

**CHAPTER 33: THE THIRD EXAM (PART 5) / JUST LIKE ME**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking / Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 **Demonic voice**

 _Letter_

(Warning: Some readers may find this chapter to be slightly more violent and bloody than the others)

* * *

"Then take the shot once and for all! DO IT!"

Closing his eyes, Renjiro pulled his arm back. Shujinko's pupils went wide as time seemed to slow down…

"Halt! Stop there in the name of youth!"

The Suna shinobis glanced over their shoulders and immediately lost their interest in Shujinko as soon as they had a good look at the individual that addressed them. They were lost for words and completely repulsed by the man's choice of outfit. Even Kinamu, the captain of the squad and a ninja who had his fair share of cold-blooded deaths on his behalf, couldn't help but cringe, feeling almost physically wounded by Gai's unholy sense of fashion.

"Gai-sensei!" Shujinko shouted in delight. The Jounin couldn't have arrived at a better time.

"Who the hell is that weirdo?" one of the Suna ninjas muttered. The others nodded in agreement.

"My name is Maito Gai, the most handsome Jounin in all of Konohagakure, and a shinobi whose youthfulness knows no boundaries," Gai proclaimed as he performed a ridiculous pose that made his overly tight spandex suit look even more tight, much to everyone's disgust. "As for you, I shall teach you never to force a child to do such a thing. I will never tolerate that sort of cruelty, whether it comes from an enemy or a comrade,"

Kinamu sneered at him. "It's no wonder Genins from Konohagakure are getting soft. Instead of learning what it takes to follow the path of us shinobis, they have freaks like you teaching them about compassion and kindness. Maybe your village wouldn't be in such a sorry state right now if there were real ninjas in your ranks,"

"If that is the way you truly feel, then I challenge all of you to a hotblooded fight! Let us see who is in the right through the exchange of blows!"

In response, Kinamu pulled out the sword strapped to his back, his subordinates doing the same (with the exception of Renjiro, who was so distracted by Gai's arrival that he totally forgot what he was supposed to do in the first place). "Hooen Formation! Don't allow this man to escape!" Within seconds, the Sunagakure Jounins surrounded Gai, forming a circle around the Taijutsu master. The idea behind the Hooen Formation was to trap the victim inside the circle and use coordinated Kenjutsu attacks to finish the job. An old and simple-minded strategy, but effective nonetheless.

Letting out a howling battle shout, Gai pulled out a pair of nunchucks and started spinning them at great speed. If he wanted to, Gai could use his nunchucks to attack his enemies' skull, but he never went for brute force unless he absolutely had to, so he mainly aimed at people's hands, feet, knees, and torso. That way, he neutralized whatever threat he had to deal with without having to kill anyone. Despite being a Jounin and a grown man, Gai never enjoyed killing, even if it was on self-defense.

By the time Renjiro realized what he was supposed to do, it was already too late. Taking advantage of the situation, Shujinko used his last smoke bomb to cover his escape and ran away like a roadrunner on the dessert.

"Damn it!" Kinamu cursed. "Renjiro, catch that boy! Don't let him get away!"

"Hai!" Renjiro replied before running through the smoke, leaving his squad to deal with the Taijutsu master.

* * *

With only fourteen years of age, Renjiro was chosen by the Council of Sunagakure to take place in the invasion. If the mission was a success, then all the Genins would receive the promotion to Chunin and the Chunins would be awarded the right to participate in the Jounin Exam. The reasons behind the attack on Konoha were never revealed, and as a Genin, the amount of information Renjiro received was close to none. All he had to do was to survive and to follow his superior's orders. The first objective was optional, the second wasn't.

Despite having his fair share of encounters with ninjas from other villages, Renjiro never imagined an invasion would be like this. People were killing each other mercilessly. People who could've been friends had they been born in a different place and time. Renjiro loved his village to death, but he simply couldn't understand why they were doing this. As far as he was concerned, Sunagakure and Otogakure were taking advantage of Konohagakure's goodwill to invade its people and kill their shinobis, and perhaps he was allowing his emotions to temper his thoughts, but it felt wrong. It felt wrong to do what he was doing.

And now, he was chasing after a boy who was even younger than him throughout a village that wasn't his own. A boy who had never done anything to him or Sunagakure. Swallowing his sense of right and wrong, Renjiro took a deep breath and told himself he was, first and foremost, a shinobi. His keen eyesight detected movement near the end of the street he was looking at, and that was all he needed to start the hunt.

Renjiro was not only older than Shujinko, but he was also faster than him. In fact, he was one of the fastest students in his class. If that wasn't enough, the Ozuma was already showing signs of exhaustion after all the action he participated in. It wasn't long before the Genin from Sunagakure was right behind Shujinko's tail.

'At this point, that guy must know I'm following him. He's running like he's trying to find a place to hide… or to attack,' Renjiro thought as he saw Shujinko entering a dark alley. 'There you are. You're mine!'

"What the..." As soon as Renjiro entered the alley, he was surprised not to see Shujinko in it. The place had lots of trash bins, as well as a strong smell of cat piss. The Genin carefully took a couple of steps forward while looking at his surroundings. There was a mountain of rubbish created by the destruction of the village blocking the path, so it was essentially a dead-end. 'A place like this can only serve one purpose...'

POOF

'… An ambush!'

Indeed, an ambush it was. Shujinko used the Henge no Jutsu to transform into one of the many trash bins around in order to attack Renjiro's blind spot. It was close, but Renjiro never stopped paying attention to his surroundings and successfully avoided getting hit by Shujinko's fist. What was more, his reflexes allowed him to use Shujinko's momentum against him by grabbing his fist and sending him against the wall.

"… Heh, you're pretty good," Shujinko said as he slowly stood up, pressing his hand against the wall for support. "I thought I could sneak up on you, but I guess I was wrong,"

"You're gonna have to do much better than that if you want to kill me," Renjiro spat out.

"… Kill you?" Shujinko repeated in a low whisper. The idea of killing Renjiro had never crossed his mind, not even for a split second. All he wanted was to leave the village and find his teammates as soon as he could, but because Renjiro was unrelentingly chasing after him, he decided to take him out before anything else. But there was a tremendous difference between knocking someone unconscious and killing someone. Shujinko, who had done both things, knew that all too well. "I don't want to kill you. And judging by how you hesitated back when your captain was bossing you around, my guess is that you don't want to kill me either,"

Renjiro pressed his lips together in anger. It was true. He did hesitate when Kinamu ordered him to kill Shujinko, and it didn't go unnoticed by the golden-eyed boy. "That was nothing. The only reason why I didn't do it was because you were cornered and outnumbered. But that's not the case anymore. It's only you and me, and no one else can interfere. I hope you're ready,"

Shujinko sighed, knowing that Renjiro was not going to let him escape just like that. Not exactly a surprise, considering the circumstances. He didn't want to run anymore. He didn't want to fight anymore. The only thing Shujinko wanted was for the invasion to come to an end. Sadly, that was not up to him.

He was alone and tired, and his legs were hurting. He had no shurikens or kunais left. The only weapons he had left were his dirty hands and his jutsus. Not a lot, but it would have to make do. His Kekkei Genkai was still cooling down, and it was a risky move to activate the Karura Tensei right now. Talk about being in a tight spot.

"What's so funny?" Renjiro asked as he saw Shujinko smirking slightly. "Is fighting for your life some sort of joke to you?"

"No, that's not it. I was just trying to find a way to get past you without having to actually fight you. All of my ideas end up exactly the same, with you chasing after me. I suppose there's no other way,"

"… You're right. There isn't,"

"In that case… Let's go,"

…

SWOOOOOSH

The two Genins ran against each other directly at exactly the same time, almost like it was coordinated. Once they were at arms-length, both Shujinko and Renjiro jumped to their left at the last second and placed their feet against the walls of the alley, using the structure of the place to their advantage.

Almost like the reflection of a mirror, the two boys jumped straightforward. Their right forearms clashed against one another, and while in mid-air, they used their left hand to punch each other in the face. Both kids fell to the ground, feeling slightly disoriented, but they quickly got up and started throwing punches at each other.

Renjiro used his slightly bigger body to press Shujinko into a corner. While the two of them fought at a similar level, it was clear that Renjiro had the advantage in terms of intensity and raw strength. Shujinko was forced to dodge and block every incoming punch and kick that was coming his way, and the few chances he had to land a strike on Renjiro, the Genin from Sunagakure would counteract his moves with little effort.

After getting hit several times, Shujinko decided to play a little dirty. Anticipating his enemy's attack, the Ozuma grabbed Renjiro's hands and kicked Renjiro's left knee three consecutive times as hard as he could like a brute, deteriorating his stance and sense of balance. Next, he tried to headbutt Renjiro, but his opponent was faster than him and Shujinko ended up being headbutted instead before receiving a hammering punch that sent him flying.

While the brown-haired boy was landing on his back, Renjiro was already in the air brandishing his tanto, fully intending to finish business. Realizing that he wasn't going to get out of the way in time, Shujinko started weaving hand signs as fast as he could. Snake-Ram-Boar-Horse-Bird. "Fuuton: Reppushoo!"

The wind gale not only stopped Renjiro from coming any closer, but it also pushed Shujinko away from his enemy's attack range by dragging his body throughout the dusty ground until reaching the end of the alley. Shujinko quickly stood up and took a defensive posture.

"A wind user, huh?" Renjiro muttered to himself as he raised his first two fingers of his left hand. The golden-eyed boy sharpened his gaze, ready to take on whatever Renjiro had in store for him. "Let's see how you like this. Fuuton: Kamaitachi!"

Renjiro's tanto was covered in a white light with a mystical windy aura surrounding the blade. He then slashed the air in front of him, creating five wind blades and sending them in consecutive order. Shujinko jumped from one wall to another, effectively dodging the wind blades that crashed against the buildings of the alley. As soon as he finished dodging Renjiro's attacks, he landed on top of the pile of rubbish that was blocking the path… exactly where Renjiro was expecting him to be.

"Haaaaahhh!" With one last shout, Renjiro sent the sixth and final wind blade at Shujinko. The Ozuma saw in slow motion how the wind blade was approaching him at high speed, ready to detach his neck from the rest of his body. He had no time to jump or to counterattack. 'He's done for...' the Suna Genin thought, not feeling accomplished or satisfied in the slightest for what was about to happen. The outcome was inevitable…

SWOOOSHHHH

Renjiro's jaw dropped when he saw Shujinko bending over backward right there where he was, allowing the wind blade to pass by without doing as much as cutting some of his hair. Out of instinct, Shujinko focused some of his chakra in his feet in order to have a better grip on his stand and avoid falling down the rubbish mountain and break his neck. 'How did he do it? I've never seen someone younger than me dodging my attack like that. This guy… He's good,' Renjiro thought, feeling just a little bit impressed by Shujinko's abilities. 'What's with his face? He's different from before,'

Indeed. Shujinko was sporting yellow markings around and under his eyes. His black pupils were now highly dilated, at least twice their normal size.

'Had it not been for the Karura Tensei, I would be dead right now,' Shujinko thought while panting. His Kekkei Genkai greatly boosted his reflexes, allowing him to anticipate almost any attack coming his way. 'I don't have a lot of chakra left. This is my last chance to beat this guy. Since I can't afford to waste any more of my chakra, Ninjutsu is out of the question. Besides, he's a wind user just like me, so he probably knows more techniques than I do. To top it all up, I don't have a damn shuriken on me… But he doesn't know that, does he? I can use that to my advantage and then… Well, it's a risky move, but I can't think of anything else and I'm running out of time… Screw it, let's give it a shot,'

Both teens stood in their places, waiting for their opponent to make the first move. It was like a duel of the Old West, but with shinobis instead of cowboys and shurikens instead of guns. The atmosphere was so tense and silent, it could be disrupted by the sound of a water drop hitting the ground. Then, Shujinko reached into his back pouch and pulled his arm back. Renjiro instantly jumped back, grabbed a couple of shurikens and threw them at Shujinko.

But Shujinko never threw his shurikens, mainly because he never had any to begin with. Instead, he jumped down the pile of rubbish, allowing Renjiro's shurikens to pass by and get lost somewhere. It took Renjiro a couple of seconds to realize what had just happened. Shujinko feigned his attack and tricked him into wasting his shurikens. It angered him how easily he fell into a trap, although to be fair, there was no way for him to know what Shujinko was planning to do. Like a cat chasing after a mouse, the Genin from Sunagakure ran after Shujinko, jumping from one building to another.

'The first part of my plan worked,' Shujinko thought with optimism. Renjiro quickly realized the purpose behind Shujinko's fake attack. He made him waste his shurikens so that he couldn't use them on the Ozuma while he was chasing after him. 'Now, it's time for part two,'

As he was getting closer to the edge of a building, Shujinko turned around while in mid-air, and as soon as his feet touched the ground, he faced Renjiro and jumped straight towards him in what appeared to be a suicidal move. Renjiro unsheathed his tanto, pulled his arm back, and waited for the right time to strike. It looked like the two Genins were about to crash against one another in mid-air as they shortened the distance between them.

'Now!' Renjiro mentally shouted as he swung his tanto in a horizontal fashion. The cold and sharp metal was surely going to end Shujinko's life…

SLASHHHHHH

'What the…!'

Before Renjiro's tanto could touch Shujinko, the Ozuma twirled his body, getting out of the way of the blade and escaping from what otherwise would've been the end of the road for him. He ducked his head down, allowing the blade of the tanto to pass right over his head. The two shinobis landed on top of opposite buildings, staring at each other as they began to sweat and to breath heavily.

Renjiro became distracted by what Shujinko was holding with his left hand. After taking a closer look, his eyes widened and instinctively looked down at his own leg.

His kunai holster was missing.

'He stole my kunai,' Renjiro realized. 'That was his plan from the very start. He never had any weapons to counter my attacks, so he tricked me into losing the ones I had,' Taking a deep breath, Renjiro calmed down, refusing to allow his frustration to mess with his head. 'From now on, I won't let him escape. I don't know how much time we have left, and I'm in enemy territory. My only chance is to wear him down as fast as possible and force him to make a mistake before any backups arrive,'

Shujinko stared at the kunai he just stole and couldn't help but chuckle a bit, despite the situation he was in. 'All of that risk, just to get a kunai in return,' he thought while he was still panting. He almost got his head chopped off twice in a day by the same ninja. 'The Karura Tensei is about to fade away. I can feel it. If I don't beat this guy in under two or three minutes, I'm gonna need a miracle from the heavens to get out of here alive,'

There was no time to waste. After grabbing the kunai and tossing away the holster, Shujinko started running at full speed, with Renjiro doing the same. They clashed against one another in what soon became a deadly dance, the kind of dance that only shinobis were capable of doing. The sound of metal piercing the wind quickly surrounded the rooftop as the two ninjas fought with all of their might, willing to kill one another because, in the shinobi world, those who don't belong to your village might as well be your worst enemy.

For the untrained eye, it looked like Renjiro was dominating the fight. After all, he was the one who was attacking almost all of the time while Shujinko mainly just blocked and dodged. However, any ninja with experience could tell that that wasn't the case at all. In fact, it was Shujinko the one who was slowly pushing Renjiro against the ropes. Despite his efforts, Renjiro was unable to hurt Shujinko or even to touch him for that matter. For some reason, the golden-eyed boy anticipated his moves and reacted accordingly, controlling the rhythm of the fight to his advantage and understanding Renjiro's attack pattern. Of course, this was all thanks to Shujinko's Karura Tensei, which really came in handy during times like this.

In the middle of the confrontation, Shujinko noticed an interesting detail. Renjiro clearly knew how to use a tanto. His moves were short, swift, and precise. Also, at the beginning of their brawl, it became apparent that Renjiro was better at Taijutsu than Shujinko due to his experience and the fact that he was naturally faster and stronger than him.

However, Renjiro didn't seem to capitalize on that. There were several instances in which Renjiro could've thrown a kick or a punch after trying to slice the Ozuma in half, yet he didn't. The Suna Genin only attacked using his tanto. In order to prove his theory, Shujinko parried away one of Renjiro's attacks and deliberately left his torso unprotected. Of course, Renjiro saw the opening and went for it, but instead of kicking him like Shujinko would've done to another person, he tried to thrust his tanto, a move that not only took him more time to do, but that also made him lose his chance as Shujinko easily dodged the incoming weapon by moving out of the way.

'There's no doubt about it. He's only gonna try to hit me with his tanto. In that case...'

CLAANNNGGG

The two weapons clashed, creating several sparkles. Both Genins stood their ground, gritting their teeth as they tried to overpower one another through sheer force. Renjiro was using both his hands, and because he was using a tanto, it was much easier for him to apply more strength, unlike Shujinko, who was using a weapon that was meant to be wielded with one hand only.

Shujinko's arms began to waver. He could almost feel his kunai beginning to slip away from his hands. Renjiro applied more pressure, intending to overwhelm the Ozuma and deliver a lethal blow right away.

But before he could do anything, Shujinko took the initiative. In a desperate attempt to win, Shujinko placed himself in an even more vulnerable position that allowed Renjiro to attack. The Genin from Sunagakure took the bait and immediately swung his tanto in the exact same way Shujinko predicted. The golden-eyed boy barely managed to block Renjiro's tanto, which produced a small cut on his right cheek and almost got his ear.

'Now!'

BAAAAM

Shujinko caught Renjiro off guard and responded with a clean left hook, hitting his left eye. Renjiro yelped as he unintentionally took a step back, giving Shujinko the opportunity to move forward and strike his other eye. Disoriented, Renjiro aimlessly tried to keep Shujinko away from him, swinging his weapon around. Using his left hand to hold the kunai, Shujinko stopped one of Renjiro's attacks and, imitating the Hyuuga's Juuken, pounded his enemy's chest with his right palm, pushing Renjiro several steps back and leaving him out of breath.

To finish it all, the Ozuma jumped towards Renjiro, who was already near the edge of the building and dropkicked the living crap out of him. Renjiro managed to preserve the natural shape of his face by raising his arms and crossing them, but the result was still the same. Shujinko kicked him so hard that the Genin from Sunagakure fell from the building they were standing on and landed on top of another building next to them. Renjiro landed face-first and bounced a little before completely stopping. His tanto was blown away and got lost somewhere on the ground.

Gasping for breath, Shujinko admired how well his strategy worked out. The sequence lasted no longer than twenty seconds. However, those twenty seconds cost Shujinko almost all the energy he had left. His legs were killing him. The Ozuma dropped to one knee, feeling like he was carrying a backpack full of heavy rocks.

'I need to find Kakashi-sensei…' Shujinko told himself as he lowered his kunai. 'I can't keep going like this… I'm at my limit...'

"Fuuton: Shinkuu Bakudan!"

Taking Shujinko by surprise, Renjiro got up, weaved four hand signs at the speed of light, took a deep, deep breath, and spat out a wind sphere the size of a soccer ball. This compressed sphere crashed into the building and exploded, destroying the spot Shujinko was standing on.

BOOOOOOM

Renjiro narrowed his eyes. His jutsu blew up a considerable portion of the building, but he had to make sure his target had been eliminated. The smoke started to dissipate. He waited, and waited, and waited…

… And just when he thought it was over, a figure came out of the smoke. It was Shujinko, who used the Kawarimi no Jutsu at the last second in order to escape the wind explosion. The wooden log he replaced himself with was sliced into bits and pieces. Not even his clothes came out unscathed. The sleeves of his fishnet shirt were torn, the bandage that used to cover his forehead was gone, and almost half of his sleeveless jacket was ruined.

Without wasting any time, the two Genins jumped towards each other. Shujinko jumped down and Renjiro jumped up, coming together right in the middle of the gap between the two buildings they were previously standing on.

Shujinko pulled his right arm back, ready to intercept Renjiro's fist and reply with his own… But then, his vision went back to normal. Everything became a lot faster, including Renjiro.

BAAAM

Renjiro punched Shujinko right in the face. The Ozuma's body crashed into the wall behind him before falling down like a rag doll.

As he was groveling on the ground, with his entire body shaking in pain, the Ozuma understood what happened. The Kawarimi no Jutsu he used to escape from Renjiro's wind attack drained all of his remaining chakra, and the Karura Tensei faded away in response. His amazing reflexes that came with the Sage Mode were gone, and without them, Shujinko lost the only advantage he had against his enemy.

Before he had time to fully stand up, Renjiro came in like a bull and pulverized Shujinko with a double leg takedown. The golden-eyed Genin tried to get the older boy off of him, but it was no use. He was too exhausted to do anything.

Renjiro punched Shujinko across the face with his right fist, busting his lips and making him taste blood inside his mouth. He punched him so hard that Shujinko thought his hands were made out of iron. The Ozuma meekly raised one of his arms in a pathetic and worthless attempt to defend himself. Renjiro punched him again, this time with his left fist. Blood started to come out.

BAAM

BAAM

BAAM

…

Eight times. Renjiro punched Shujinko eight times. His knuckles were stained with the blood of the Ozuma by now.

Shujinko's face was a complete mess, to say the very least. Both his eyes were swollen and half closed. The cut on his left eyebrow had reopened and a thread of blood was coming out of it. His cheeks were painted with red and purple bruises that covered his tan skin. There was blood coming out of the corners of his mouth, staining his jaw, chin, and his throat. It was a miracle his nose wasn't broken.

Renjiro was breathing heavily, feeling slightly exhausted after giving Shujinko the punishment of a lifetime. He truly came close to beating Shujinko to death. After all, the boy was barely conscious. Taking a deep breath, he reached for his ankle and pulled out a small knife that he always carried around during missions. It was time to end what he started. It was time to prove himself he was a real ninja. 'I can do this… I have to do this… I'm sorry...'

Shujinko's destiny seemed to be decided. He was going to die a miserable death at a young age, leaving his family and friends behind. There was nothing he could do about it. Renjiro raised his hand, holding the knife backward with the blade pointing down. The only thing left to do was the execution of the final move that would send Shujinko off to the other life.

…

At first, Shujinko thought Renjiro wanted to say something before killing him, but the Suna Genin was completely silent, staring at the eyes of the Ozuma with a conflicted look on his face. His hand was shaking. He was acting as if he had no idea what was going on, like someone who was caught up in a Genjutsu without being aware of it.

Wether it was out of hesitation or out of doubt, Renjiro was not moving.

"This… This is gonna... bite you in the ass… later on… You know that… don't you?" Shujinko asked. His voice was stiff and he couldn't even pronounce some of the words correctly. The pain was so great that something as basic as talking was akin to torture.

Renjiro looked bewildered. "Wh-What?"

In an unexpected turn of events, Shujinko spat a chunk of blood and saliva on one of Renjiro's eyes. During that second of interruption in which Renjiro didn't know what just happened, Shujinko placed his hand over the one Renjiro was using to wield his knife and, with his other hand, managed to grab a rock that happened to be close to him. He noticed it while he was being pounded by Renjiro and decided to use it as soon as he could. Even while he was being beaten to a pulp by Renjiro, Shujinko never stopped planing his next move, just like Naruto did when he fought Neji.

And his next move was bashing Renjiro with it. Before Renjiro could realize what Shujinko did five seconds ago, the Ozuma leaned forward and struck Renjiro with all the strength he could gather. The rock made the impact on that delicate spot of the face between someone's eye and ear.

BAAM

"Haaaghghg!" Renjiro fell on his back, effectively getting off of the Ozuma. He covered his face with both of his hands, dropping his hidden knife in the process. Shujinko's extremely risky maneuver paid off, as Renjiro was choking on pain now, rolling on the ground like a poor victim of a seizure. His left hand was full of blood that was pouring out of his injury.

While Renjiro was still lying on the ground experiencing an excruciating pain, Shujinko got up and kicked him in the gut like a stray dog, sending him back several feet away. Under normal circumstances, Shujinko wouldn't have done something so pitiful and low. Kicking people unable to defend themselves was not okay, at least according to him and his moral code of conduct. But these circumstances were far from being normal, and after the brutal beating he took from Renjiro, everything was fair game from now on.

'I told you this was going to bite you in the ass later on,' Shujinko told himself as he approached the Genin from Sunagakure, who was way too disoriented and wounded to fight back. Renjiro missed his chance to kill him despite being in the perfect position to do so, and he was now paying a heavy price for his mistake.

When Renjiro looked back, he saw Shujinko was two steps away from him and tried to escape. However, Shujinko wouldn't have any of that. The Ozuma clumsily threw himself at Renjiro and the two Genins fell to the ground like a couple of drunkards trying to fight under the influence of sake, with Shujinko landing on top of him.

BAAM

Shujinko used the same rock from before to whack Renjiro a second time, pretty much shattering the left side of his face and breaking his nose. Renjiro's blood landed everywhere, staining the dust on the ground of the alley they were in, his own shinobi uniform, and of course, Shujinko.

Renjiro stopped struggling and his body became relaxed. Both his hands and his lips were twitching, but he was no longer conscious, or at least it certainly didn't seem so. Shujinko tossed the rock away and, in an almost robotic fashion, pulled out the kunai ready to do what Renjiro failed to: Kill his enemy.

Shujinko was exhausted both physically and mentally, to the point where he barely knew what he was doing. The beating he received and the fact that he almost got killed took its toll on Shujinko's psyche, numbing his sense of right and wrong. His fragile mental state was being influenced by the human natural urge to eliminate anyone who threatened his life before they could get to him, especially now that Renjiro was the most vulnerable.

His right hand felt stiff. His elbow hurt. The taste of blood was abundant in his mouth. He raised his kunai with the intent to get it over with, but then…

… but then Renjiro half-opened his right eye, and Shujinko stared at it.

He froze.

Shujinko experienced an epiphany. Or maybe he was hallucinating? Whatever the case it was, there was no denying that what he had in front of him felt just as real as it was illogical. As he stared at Renjiro… he stared at himself.

The revelation hit Shujinko like a bucket of cold water. He suddenly became shocked with himself, almost disgusted, for acting in such a barbaric way. What had he done? Since when did he behave like a caveman? He was much better than that.

But that wasn't the only thing that was going on inside Shujinko's mind. In that moment, he understood why Renjiro didn't kill him back when he had the chance, and he also realized that he couldn't kill Renjiro either.

Because they were same. They were two young shinobis forced to fight against each other, all because of a stupid and pointless conflict orchestrated by those who controlled their villages. Renjiro never wanted to kill Shujinko, and Shujinko never wanted to kill Renjiro. They both tried to bury their emotions in order to cope with what was deemed the right thing to do in the eyes of the elder ninjas.

However, after they both bashed each other's heads, and when they had the perfect opportunity to finish the fight once and for all, they realized just how similar they actually were. That was why they both saw their own reflection as they stared at each other. Despite being born in different shinobi villages and having lived two different lives, they found themselves in the same position of being forced to fight and kill even if they didn't want to. In that sense, they were like brothers.

And neither of them had the guts or the will to kill a brother.

'I'm done with this,' Shujinko thought, putting the kunai back in its holster and slowly getting off of Renjiro. He was not going to kill him. He had experienced enough violence and seen enough blood for a day.

As he started to walk away, he heard Renjiro moving from behind. The Genin from Suna slowly got on his knees and elbows, still covering the wound inflicted on his face. "Why..." Renjiro coughed out, obviously talking about why he didn't kill him.

Shujinko stopped walking but didn't bother to turn around. It took him a while to come up with an answer. In the end, he said the only thing he could think of. "… You… already know… why..."

No more words were spoken. They both knew the fight was over despite not engaging in a conversation. They just knew it and that was it. Shujinko left the alley, leaving Renjiro behind to his own luck. There wasn't much he could do for him, or himself for that matter, as he was almost completely out of chakra and thoroughly exhausted. Not to mention, he also had his own injuries to worry about, like the cut above his eyebrow that slowly but steadily pumped out blood.

Without a shred of a doubt, Shujinko had never been this weak and vulnerable before.

* * *

…

With his hand against the wall for support, Shujinko tried his hardest to seek help or refuge. The streets of Konoha were a lot quieter than before. Was the invasion over? He sure as hell hoped it was. 'I wonder if my teammates are alright. They have to be… I hope they are...' Shujinko thought, starting to lose consciousness as everything around him seemed to move.

There was nothing he could do. His head was killing him. His legs were aching, shaking in pain. The brown-haired Genin looked down at his feet, with blood and sweat dripping down his face. He saw two blurry dots instead of his boots, and he realized he was suffering the effects of chakra exhaustion. '… This is bad… At this rate, I'm gonna...'

And then, his whole world went dark.

...

* * *

Shujinko grunted as the distorted sound of two voices reached his ears. Little by little, he opened his eyes as much as he could and became aware of his surroundings. He was being carried through the forest by two ninjas who each had one of his arms over their shoulders. At first, he thought he had been captured by the enemy and was being taken away from the village, which nearly caused him to suffer a panic attack. But his fears faded away once he got a clear vision of one of the guys that were carrying him.

"A-Aoba-sensei?" Shujinko stuttered.

Aoba looked at Shujinko and smiled slightly. "You're awake. It's good to have you back in the world of the living. You almost had me worried,"

"Indeed. We were looking for survivors and you happened to be close to where we were. That's some luck right there,"

The Ozuma turned his head to the other side and quickly recognized the other individual. It was Genma, the proctor of the third exam. "What… What happened? What… did I… miss?"

"The enemy forces are retreating. Apparently, their plan to invade Konoha didn't go as well as they were expecting and they're being ordered to leave immediately," Aoba informed Shujinko. "As we speak, we're taking you to one of the many gathering zones of the village designated for emergencies like the one we have in our hands. Members of the ANBU are making sure there are no threats left in the village while we take care of our injured comrades,"

Shujinko let out a sigh. The invasion was finally over. 'Thank Kami I'm not dead,' he told himself.

Before he knew it, they arrived in a place located in the outskirts of the village, where a fairly-sized group of people was moving around. Civilians of all ages were helping in any way they could. Some of them were putting up basic tents where medics and paramedics could work with their patients. Others were bringing whatever supplies they could get their hands on, with the help of a few designated Chunins that gave out instructions. Babies and toddlers were crying their eyes out while their parents did whatever they could to calm them down, although some of the women and men were crying as well, albeit not nearly as loud as their children.

The three ninjas reached the medical area of the designated spot, where Shujinko recognized two familiar faces.

"Shujinko!" Choji shouted as he quickly approached his friend, with Ino following close behind. They were wearing civilian clothes but they still had their headbands on, since people needed to recognize them as ninjas in these kinds of situations. Otherwise, the villagers could easily mistake them for normal kids.

The two members of Team Asuma were somewhat shocked to see the Ozuma in such a sorry state. While Shujinko had no life-threatening injuries or anything like that, his face was so bruised and swollen that he looked like he just came from a boxing match. Not to mention, his facial features were covered in dirt and dry blood. It was like seeing Sakura after being mercilessly pummeled by Zaku during the second part of the Chunin Exams.

"We'll leave you here with your friends for the time being," Aoba said while Ino and Choji helped Shujinko. The poor guy couldn't even walk on his own.

Genma nodded. "That's right. We need to go back to the village and see if there are any survivors left behind. Make sure you get at least some basic medical treatment. If there aren't any medics available, then ask for some supplies and patch yourself up the best you can," and with that said, the two Tokubetsu Jounin disappeared in a cloud of smoke, making use of the Shunshin no Jutsu.

"How did you get hurt this badly?" Ino asked as she and her teammate grabbed Shujinko's arms and placed them over their shoulders. "Actually, don't answer that. You look like your teeth will drop if you open your mouth,"

"My team… Where are they?" Shujinko said, fighting back the urge to spit on the ground. He could still taste some blood inside his mouth.

"Kiba and Kurenai-sensei are searching for them," Choji replied. "They left about an hour ago, so they're probably on their way here. I just hope that they're okay,"

Ino rolled her eyes. "Of course they're okay! Sasuke-kun is with them, after all. That sand freak doesn't stand a chance against him," she stated as if she was talking to first-year Academy students. Shujinko didn't even try to argue with her. He was too tired. "But anyways, we need someone to take a look at your wounds. Helloooo, are there any medics available? We have another survivor over here!" Ino shouted at the doctors and nurses wearing white coats and plastic gloves that were working inside the tents.

Almost no one paid her any attention. The medics were working as fast as they could in order to treat as many people as possible, but even so, they had their hands full. Besides, most ninjas were suffering from injuries far more worse than the ones Shujinko had, so obviously they had priority over him.

"You guys need help?" came a voice from behind.

Shujinko, still being held by Choji and Ino, turned around to see who was the one speaking to them.

His heart skipped a beat and his throat suddenly became dry, as if he had swallowed a bunch of sand.

It was Tenten.

"I remember you," Ino said. "Yeah, you're teammates with Lee and Neji. Your name is Tenten, right?"

Tenten nodded. "That's correct. Since the invasion is practically over, I thought I might as well be of use and help here while Gai-sensei and Kakashi-sensei are out there doing Kami knows what,"

It was true. Being the fierce kunoichi that she was, Tenten quickly got herself some weaponry from her father's store and fought alongside a squad of Jounins until the enemy forces from Sunagakure and Otogakure began retreating. Once this occurred, Tenten took the initiative and decided to help people without the need of having a superior telling her to do that, and since this was the closest location from where she was, she came here and started treating injuries to the best of her abilities. Tenten was certainly no medic-nin, but she at least knew basic healing procedures that proved to be useful in a number of missions.

Ino's face brightened up. "Good, because our friend here could really use your he-"

"I'm fine!" Shujinko all but shouted, unnerving the two members of Team Asuma as well as Tenten. "I just… need to re-rest… a little bit… Y-You don't… have to bother..." Tenten's presence, as well as his exhaustion and his busted lips, made it almost impossible for Shujinko to talk. Trying to prove his point, the brown-haired Genin took a step forward, leaving Ino and Choji behind. When he tried to take a second step, his knees failed him and he ended up sitting on the ground looking like an idiot.

Tenten rolled her eyes as she knelt in front of Shujinko and unzipped a medical kit she was carrying. "You must've been hit really hard in the head if you think you're fine," she said, pouring some alcohol into a piece of cotton. "This might hurt a tad bit, just so you know,"

The kunoichi then started cleaning his swollen and bruised face, disinfecting his wounds and getting rid of all the dirt and the blood stains. The process was slow and painful, but Shujinko refused to make a weakling out of himself and fought back the urge to yelp, only letting small grunts to come out of his mouth.

Yes, Shujinko was experiencing a large amount of pain, but the pain was only half of the torture. The last time the two of them were together, Shujinko ended up behaving like a weirdo, and he simply couldn't muster the courage to look at her straight in the eye and apologize. And now, after weeks of not talking to her, Tenten came out of nowhere and began treating his injuries. Maybe Renjiro punched him so hard that he was left unrecognizable, and Tenten didn't know it was him. Regardless, the situation had Shujinko feeling utterly embarrassed.

Things got even worse for him once Tenten was done cleaning his face. After placing a small band-aid over his eyebrow, the kunoichi opened a small ointment in which she kept some healing cream and, using her index and middle finger, took some of the lotion and started spreading it all over his bruises.

Shujinko's face and ears began to burn red as Tenten touched his cheeks. Thankfully, his skin was already red and purple from the beating he took from Renjiro, so his sudden blush was only half-noticed. Hiding his face, the Ozuma tried one last time to regain his voice. "Tenten… you really don't have to d-do this… I-I'll just wait and the-"

"Don't talk now. You're already making my job harder just by moving. And drop the tough-guy attitude, will you?"

What else was he supposed to do? Shujinko had no choice but to raise his head and allow Tenten to go on, although he flat out refused to make eye-contact. His face was boiling by now, with traces of smoke coming out of his ears.

And yet, despite having to deal with all of this, a part of him secretly enjoyed being treated by Tenten. He knew very well that Tenten most likely wasn't taking care of him out of the goodness of her heart or because she was interested in him. She was simply doing what she was supposed to do, nothing else, nothing more. Still, the fact that she was the one who was treating his injuries made him feel happy and special. Heck, it almost made the beating worth it. He wondered if, by any chance, Tenten was thinking the same thing.

Ino, who was looking at the scene from a distance, frowned. Shujinko was acting weird, and despite not knowing him the way she knew her male teammates, a tingling sensation was telling her Shujinko's attitude had everything to do with the female member of Team Gai. After all, the members of the Yamanaka clan were known for being naturally perceptive, and Ino was no exception. 'I wonder if there's something going on between those two,' she thought while rubbing her chin. 'It's not that far-fetched, is it? Sure, she's older than us, but maybe she doesn't care about age that much. At first, I thought she was interested in Neji, but that doesn't mean Shujinko is a bad match for a girl… I can already tell this is gonna make one hell of a gossip,'

While all of this was happening, Choji took advantage of the situation and carefully left, making sure not to be seen or heard by Ino. Once he was out of sight, he immediately grabbed a bag of his favorite potato chips from Kami knows where and started devouring them. He was well aware of the fact that this was hardly the right time and place to cave into his appetite, but everyone had their own way of dealing with pressure, and this was Choji's.

Before Shujinko knew it, Tenten was already placing the last band-aid on his face. "That should do the trick for now," Tenten said as she started packing her stuff. "Don't think you're off the hook though. It's gonna take a while before those bruises disappear completely,"

Shujinko nodded in understanding. "Thanks a lot… And Tenten..." he began to say, gaining the brunette's attention. "I… I'm sorry for what ha-happened last time… I don't know w-what got into me… I just… I'm sorry, okay?"

Tenten blinked as she tried to recall what happened the last time she saw Shujinko, and when she did, a faint blush dusted her cheeks. "Look, just let it go. I have no idea what happened back then, but it hardly matters right now, does it?" Tenten looked rather annoyed, but Shujinko knew this conversation was going to take place sooner or later, so they might as well talk about it now. "Let's both forget it happened, okay?"

"That's fine… by me," the Ozuma was rather surprised, to say the least. He was expecting something like 'don't you even think about doing that a second time' or 'If you ever do something like that again, you will regret it'. In other words, he expected Tenten to be a lot more aggressive, but instead, she was acting as if she was also to blame for what happened.

What Shujinko failed to understand was that he was not the only one who felt the way he did. When they accidentally touched hands, Tenten looked at Shujinko the same way Shujinko looked at her. Sure, she might have recovered from her state of trance faster than him, but she still said nothing, mainly because she wasn't outraged or even angry, but instead she was surprised and sort of speechless.

In any case, Shujinko felt like he had just lifted a huge weight from his shoulders. Everything went better than expected, and although there was still some work left to do, Shujinko was now convinced that his relationship with Tenten was going to improve given enough time. 'Maybe I should talk to her once this whole mess is over,'

ZOOOOOOM

In that moment, several individuals that were coming from the forest appeared in the middle of the camp. It was Kurenai, who was carrying an unconscious Sakura with both arms. Almost immediately, Kiba and Sasuke showed up, holding an unconscious Naruto. Pakkun was also with them.

The Ozuma's eyes grew wide. "Sasuke!" he shouted, momentarily forgetting how painful it was for him to speak. "Are you alright? What happened to Naruto and Sakura?"

"Take it easy, gaki. Those two are gonna be fine," Pakkun replied. "Your blonde buddy over there fought Gaara and even convinced him and his siblings to leave. It sure was a sight to behold,"

"W-W-What?!" Shujinko couldn't believe his ears. "Sasuke, is that true? Naruto fought Gaara… and actually won?"

Sasuke didn't respond. His face, for some reason, was showing emotions that Shujinko had never seen before in Sasuke. It was like a mixture of disbelief, acceptance, and… envy? No, it couldn't possibly be envy. Annoyance, perhaps? Whatever it was, it was clear that Sasuke was not looking comfortable. "Naruto is exhausted after fighting Gaara. It's gonna take a while for him to come back to his senses," was the only thing Sasuke said, as if that statement answered his teammate's question.

"They'll wake up soon enough," Kurenai said out loud. "Find two comfortable spots to leave them resting and then be ready to go back to the village. Once the ANBU are done, we're gonna have to return and start rebuilding right away. I'm afraid Konoha has sustained tremendous damage, but at least our villagers are safe,"

Shujinko bowed his head in sorrow. He didn't want to think how many people had lost their homes and their livelihood. Without being an expert on the subject, the golden-eyed boy knew the village was going to experience weeks and even months of hardships.

Before he could go on dwelling about the future, he was interrupted by the sound of a pair of boots landing on the ground. He looked over his shoulder, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw who had just come.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

Indeed, it was Kakashi. Unlike Shujinko, the silver-haired Jounin looked unscathed, not a single scratch on him. For Kami's sake, even his uniform was as clean as it was before the invasion began. Shujinko never doubted his sensei was going to survive, but still, it felt great to see him alive.

"Any news from the ANBU?" Kurenai asked without missing a beat.

"The invasion is over. We're still counting our losses, but so far, we know that the village is in a very fragile state. A large portion of the territory needs rebuilding, and the amount of casualties has left us vulnerable for the time being,"

The news left everyone disappointed, but at the same time, they knew it was something to be expected. They had just suffered an invasion, after all.

"… And what else?" Kurenai asked, becoming increasingly worried as she noticed the sad look on Kakashi's face. The situation was pretty dark, obviously, but Kakashi was known for keeping his emotions under control during times of need, so for him to openly show sadness meant something terrible had happened.

But what came next out of Kakashi's mouth exceeded their expectations by a long shot. Shujinko, whose face was still very swollen, opened his eyes completely after hearing what the Jounin had to say.

"… Hokage-sama has been killed,"

* * *

Aaaaaand that's the end of chapter 33.

If you haven't noticed by now, this chapter is focused on Shujinko pretty much entirely. I wanted not only to give him more attention but also to show a brutal, more realistic picture of what happens in a shinobi invasion. Genins are forced to fight and do whatever they have to do in order to kill one another. Shujinko is a Genin who has never experienced something like war, and he still has a lot to learn about the way ninjas live their lives.

Of course, this story also needs a dose of humor every once in a while, so I decided to put that last scene between Shujinko and Tenten in order to lighten up the atmosphere (I'm well aware of how gloomy the chapter ended, but I digress). It also helped to get past that awkward situation from a few chapters ago.

All in all, I'm pretty satisfied with how everything went down. The invasion is over, and soon the whole 'search for Tsunade' arc will begin, and before you ask, let me clarify that Shujinko will NOT be joining Naruto and Jiraiya. I have other plans for him.

Once this chapter is uploaded, I will also delete the previous message that I posted a few days ago, in which I stated that there won't be much activity going on regarding this story as I will be enjoying my vacations until the end of February. Don't be surprised if the next chapter comes up in March.

Don't forget to Review, Favorite & Follow if you like how this story is going.

Ja ne!


	34. Chapter 34

**CHAPTER 34: A BETTER GOAL**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking / Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 **Demonic voice**

 _Letter_

* * *

Two days had passed since the invasion. Orochimaru's plan of destroying Konohagakure failed, but the village suffered a huge blow thanks to him. Lots of buildings were destroyed in the process and many ninjas fought and died to protect their home. Civilian casualties were low, but a large number of villagers lost their jobs, their houses, their food, their resources, or even worse, a loved one.

However, the people in Konohagakure had one thing in common. They all suffered from the loss of a very important person.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, died during the invasion.

The funeral was going to take place today, and everyone who wasn't unable to go due to serious physical injuries had the moral obligation to attend the ceremony, which was going to be held in the center of the cemetery. Drops of water were falling down from the gray sky as if the heavens were weeping for the death of the Hokage.

Luckily for the Ozuma clan, their house was barely affected by the invasion. A few broken glasses here and there, and it was going to take a while before they could have access to hot water again. It could've been much, much worse. Right now, Shujinko was washing his face in the bathroom, and when he was done, he looked at himself in the mirror.

He looked slightly better than before. Despite having to wear some bandages and band-aids, and still having his right eye bruised, he wasn't feeling as sore as he did two days ago. While he was still recovering from his chakra exhaustion, Shujinko could at least walk on his own, although activities like running or sparring were out of the question until he made significant progress in his recovery.

"It's almost time now," Shujinko told himself as he left the bathroom and entered his small bedroom, where a pair of black pants and a black shirt were neatly folded on top of his desk. He slowly put on his funeral attire, grunting in pain every once in a while. When he started wondering where was his headband, Shujinko remembered he lost it back in the invasion, and told himself he needed to replace it as soon as things were back to normal. With nothing left to do, Shujinko put on his boots, grabbed his keys and left the house.

On his way to the ceremony, Shujinko kept looking at the ground, still struggling to come to terms with what was happening. The Hokage, their leader, the strongest shinobi of the village, was dead. He knew very well that it was something that was eventually going to happen. After all, there was no such thing as immortality. But still, the fact that the wise and kind old man that dedicated his entire life looking after the village and its people was no longer around felt surreal… and wrong.

'He sacrificed his life for all of us,' Shujinko thought as his chest began to feel heavy. Back in the Academy, the students were told that there was no greater honor to serve and die for Konoha, and all of those who did that were heroes of the highest degree, even if no one knew who they were. The idea of having to die in order to achieve that sort of reputation was appalling for the Ozuma, who wanted to someday earn that kind of honor and respect without having to leave the world of the living.

That day, destiny seemed to be paying attention to Team 7. Shujinko met Sasuke and Sakura on his way, both of them wearing the same black clothes, with the exception that Sakura was wearing a skirt. They didn't feel the need to say hello to each other. They merely acknowledged their presences through subtle body gestures.

"We should wait for him," Shujinko said to his teammates before they could leave. The Uchiha and the pink-haired girl agreed, and while the clouds became darker and darker, the three Genins waited in silence for the last member of their team.

Five minutes later, they spotted Naruto walking on the same street in which they were, with his head hanging low and his hands inside his pockets. The Kyuubi Jinchuriki only seemed to notice them once he reached the end of the street, and when he did, he quickly used his sleeves to wipe away his tears, failing to hide the utterly sad and depressed look on his face.

The death of Hiruzen struck Naruto hard, very hard. From the day they met, the old man became one of the few people that looked over Naruto, offering advice when needed and scolding him when he deserved it. The Sandaime treated the young Uzumaki with respect and humanity, something that he rarely experienced growing up as the local pariah.

And now that he was gone, Naruto couldn't hold back his tears. In numerous occasions, he behaved like an ungrateful brat towards the Hokage and rarely apologized for his pranks. His intentions were free of malice, of course. He just wanted attention and to have a laugh or two. But the old man was no longer around, and Naruto realized he would never have the chance to thank him for everything he did for him.

Again, there was silence. No one wanted to talk to Naruto, as if talking to him right now would make things better. In an unspoken agreement, the Genins of Team 7 banded together and made their way to the funeral.

As expected, the funeral had a massive attendance. Ninjas and civilians alike were paying their respects to the fallen leader, leaving white roses on his grave as a way of expressing their sorrow. Shujinko, who had never been to a funeral before, was surprised by how sad it felt. Misery and grieve were practically in the air, and the cold and windy weather wasn't exactly helping. Next to the grave, there was a framed picture of Sarutobi Hiruzen, and every time Shujinko looked at it, a strong sense of melancholy took over him, reminding the Ozuma how you can be the most powerful man in the village and still die like anyone else.

Instead of joining Daichi, Matsumi, and Nanami, Shujinko preferred to stay with his classmates for the time being. The Sarutobi clan was allowed to take up space closer to the grave than anyone else, for they were not only suffering for the death of their Hokage, but also the death of their clan leader and family member.

Out of the many people that were there, there was one individual that caught Shujinko's attention. An old man was standing next to the Sarutobi clan. His outfit was slightly different than most, using black and white tunics instead of a pair of pants and a shirt. His forehead and right eye were completely covered by bandages for some reason, and he also kept his right arm hidden inside his clothes. He was holding a cane with his other hand.

There were two other individuals next to him, another old man and an old lady. The Ozuma supposed those three had to be part of the Konoha Council, a group of people whose job was to make the Hokage's job easier, as far as he was concerned. He wasn't expecting the Konoha Council to be so… well, old. They appeared to be as old as Hiruzen used to be, and the Sandaime Hokage had already reached his seventies, having lived an incredibly long life by shinobi standards.

One of the Elders, Mitokado Homura, walked up to the stage and began his speech once he made sure the crowd was large enough. "Fellow members of Konohagakure, we have gathered here to mourn the death of the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. His departure has touched us deeply, but as long as we remember who he was and what he sacrificed his life for, Hiruzen will always be with us. His dedication and his love for our village will never be forgotten,"

"For the Will of Fire has no end," the crowd replied.

Homura nodded towards Koharu, who joined him. "Our village was founded by our ancestors, who lived and died for the sake of a better tomorrow. Hiruzen has now fulfilled his duty as a shinobi and has joined his predecessors. May their spirits bless us with wisdom and enlightenment, and guide us towards a prosperous future,"

"For the Will of Fire has no end,"

In unison, the two Elders said the rest of the speech. The thing about funerals in Konoha was that there was no need for prolonged rituals or unnecessary procedures. As a shinobi, you were expected to overcome death quickly, because if you didn't, then you could potentially become a hindrance to your teammates and, as a result, put the mission in danger.

Eventually, the funeral ended with everyone leaving a white rose on top of the Sandaime's grave as a sign of respect. Shujinko's heart grew heavy as he saw a devastated Konohamaru slowly walk his way to his grandparent and leave a white rose, his face covered in rampant tears of pain, sadness, and helplessness. Shujinko did his thing and left his own white rose while making a quick prayer, thanking the Sandaime for all of what he did for the village.

* * *

|Later that day, Hokage Monument|

Shujinko found himself sitting on top of the Shodaime Hokage's rock-carved head, contemplating a rather depressive sight. Once the funeral was over, the day went on uneventful as villagers and ninjas alike were forbidden to do any kind of work. Today was a day of mourning and silence.

Since there was nothing he could do, Shujinko decided to take a little trip to one of his favorites places in the village, the Hokage Monument, and started thinking about life and death. The last time he was here, the Sandaime lectured him about how he shouldn't expect recognition from those whose lives depended on them, and how his death would most likely go nearly unnoticed by the villagers. That was fine because, at the end of the day, shinobis from Konoha had inherited the Will of Fire, the unstoppable desire to protect the village at all costs.

"… _Tell me something, who do you think the King is?"_

" _I beg your pardon?"_

" _If you had to associate the village with the pieces of a Shogi game, who would be the King?"_

 _Shujinko thought about it, not really understanding what the Hokage was trying to tell him. The King was by far the most important piece of the game. If the King was captured or surrounded, it was game over. It also represented power and authority. "I'm not really sure. Aren't you supposed to be the King, Hokage-sama?"_

 _The Sandaime chuckled slightly. "Just as I thought. I do not blame you for thinking that way. I am not the King. A village can survive without its Hokage, but there can't be a Hokage without a village to look after. Before we part ways, I will tell you one last thing: When you discover who is the real King, you will understand why the village is so important and why we follow the Will of Fire. Good night, Shujinko-kun..."_

That day, Shujinko received an important lesson. There was a reason behind the sacrifices and the hardships endured by the ninjas of Konohagakure, and that reason was the existence of a King. But Shujinko still had no idea who or even what the King was. 'I never got to ask him who was the King, and now, I'll never will. It's too late,'

And yet, something was telling Shujinko the Sandaime never intended to directly reveal to him who the King was. It was more like a riddle of sorts. The only clue that he had was that whoever held the title of Hokage was not the King.

"… _A village can survive without its Hokage, but there can't be a Hokage without a village to look after..."_

That was true. The only reason the village was still on its feet (just barely, though) was because of the sacrifice done by Hiruzen. The man gave his life for Konoha and protected everyone from Orochimaru. He did so… because he cared for everyone, and because he refused to see Konoha become ashes in the wind.

'That's how important the village was to him,' Shujinko thought. 'He didn't hide in his office or commanded others to fight for him like a coward. He was out there on the battlefield just like me, Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and every other shinobi I can think of. It was like he was protecting the King he told me about… The King...'

In that moment, everything started making sense. Like a thunder of understanding and realization, the answer blasted away all of his questions and doubts inside his head.

The Hokage protected the village… because the village, alongside the villagers, were the King.

If the Hokage died, another one would take the title and assume the responsibilities of the village. But if the village was destroyed, it didn't matter how many Hokages out there were willing to take the job, because there would be nothing left to protect.

At least, that was what Shujinko thought. It made sense, right? It certainly seemed like something the Sandaime would've said to him. And even if that wasn't what Hiruzen was trying to tell him, it still came out as an answer that the Ozuma could understand and share.

'Sandaime-sama, I… I think I get it now… Thank you...'

* * *

The day after the Hokage's funeral, the whole village started working on the reconstruction process. Everyone, from ninjas to civilians (including elderly people and children) had to contribute according to their abilities. Obviously, the best and most experienced builders had to co-operate with the local authorities, often working for long, uninterrupted periods of times in order to restructure the village and make sure nothing was left undone.

Shinobis experienced a heavy loss of income as a big portion of their salaries had to be used to buy resources, tools, and building materials. Some of them even had to work for free, basically donating their well-earned wages to help the cause. Those who had to stay, like Shujinko, were told to obey the construction workers and to follow their instructions. As for the golden-eyed boy, he didn't know jack about building houses, so he simply delivered whatever object the construction workers needed, often choosing to carry the heavier ones so that the little kids could help by bringing things like tools and food.

A week had passed since the reconstruction of the village began. Shujinko was in his bedroom, looking at the ceiling with both his hands resting on his stomach. His body was sore after all the rough work he had done so far, and what was worse, he was not allowed to take a day off as they needed every single available person to contribute. His back was numb, and even his bed-sheets felt cold.

But Shujinko couldn't care less. Over the past few days, he had been feeling anxious, restless. There was one thing, one thought that was hammering his consciousness and burning his psyche.

'Sasuke managed to beat Gaara in a fair fight, and Naruto managed to beat him and Neji too… And what did I do? Almost nothing in comparison,'

It was true. What he managed to do during the third exam was laughable compared to what his male teammates did. He only took on Kankuro and Renjiro, and he had Shino to help him during his fight with the Sand Sibling.

On the other hand, it took Sasuke just a couple of minutes to neutralize Gaara, something not even Lee could do back in the Preliminaries. His speed was at another level, and now he owned the Chidori, a jutsu created and favored by Hatake Kakashi himself. He achieved all of that… after training just for one month.

Naruto's growth was even scarier. He took on the genius of the Hyuuga clan all by himself and came out victorious. No one saw that coming, maybe except for Naruto, who never stopped believing in himself. Oh, and if that wasn't ludicrous enough, he also faced Gaara and, somehow, convinced him to leave. In just one month of training, Naruto took giant steps forward and did what apparently no one else could.

'Those two… they defeated guys that I can't even compete against… after just one month worth of training,'

And what about him? What did he achieve after the same period of time? He learned how to walk on water and to produce one single shadow clone. Impressive for a Genin, maybe, but none of that would've helped him against either Neji or Gaara. He would've been squashed like a bug.

BAAM

Before he knew what he was doing, Shujinko tightened his fist and punched the wall next to him, leaving a slight mark. It really angered him how weak he felt against Naruto and Sasuke, as if those two were in a league above his. Things were not supposed to be like this.

In that moment, Shujinko became… scared? Afraid? Why was he so threatened by them all of a sudden? He didn't know. Everything was happening way too fast for him to react, and while everyone was moving forward, he seemed to remain stuck in his place… and it felt wrong. It felt wrong not being able to do what they could, especially when not too much time ago, he considered himself to be stronger than Naruto and on par with Sasuke. That was no longer the case and he knew it.

Unable to keep control of his frustration, Shujinko got out of bed, grabbed his shinobi equipment, opened the window and left his house. It was too late to go out and begin training at the nearest camp available, and he was also breaking the rules by defying the midnight curfew that was recently imposed by the higher-ups, but he couldn't help it. He desperately needed to blow off some steam.

It didn't take him that long to reach the nearest training ground. Luckily for him, the streets were empty, and apparently, no shinobi saw him going around the village, which was certainly a relief.

Upon reaching the training ground, he stretched for ten minutes as fast as he could, making sure his body was all warmed up. Once he was finished, he allowed the cool breeze of the night to pass by before performing a backward somersault. While he was in the air, he twirled around, reached for his back pouch and threw a handful of shurikens at three wooden dummies that were nearby.

THUCK THUCK THUCK THUCK THUCK THUCK

Before Shujinko landed from the jump, the shurikens had already reached their target. He narrowed his eyes when he saw that not all of the shurikens thrown landed where he aimed, as some of them were clearly not inside the bull's eye. "It's not enough," he muttered.

Almost instinctively, he turned around and threw a kunai at a target that was placed several feet away from where he was standing. Immediately after throwing the weapon, he weaved a couple of hand signs and brought back a jutsu he hadn't used in a while. "Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Several copies of the kunai surrounded the original as they all landed on the target. The real kunai hit the bullseye, and the other ones faded away as soon as they made contact with the target. It wasn't a particularly difficult technique to perform, he just wanted to make sure he still had it.

 _ZIP_

 _In a blink of an eye, Sasuke disappeared and reappeared behind Gaara, who barely had any time to respond. 'He is fast! Just like the other one!'_

 _BAAAM!_

 _Gaara's defense was useless against the speed of the Uchiha. Like a memory of the past coming to reality, the Ichibi Jinchuriki was sent back by Sasuke, whose Taijutsu had an uncanny resemblance to Lee's Goken._

" _So that's your sand armor, huh?" Sasuke asked as he saw Gaara's face tearing apart. "I'll make sure to smash it to pieces,"_

Using his chakra to boost his speed, Shujinko reached a wooden training dummy and immediately began delivering blows and kicks, ignoring the increasing pain in his knuckles and ankles as he punched and kicked harder and harder. These wooden training dummies were made out of trees with remarkably solid bark, so they were very durable. It wasn't long before the Ozuma's fists acquired a shade of red.

" _His chakra… It's actually visible. Amazing," Sakura whispered._

" _It is the only technique that Kakashi hasn't copied from someone else," Gai added while the rest listened eagerly. "Its name comes from the sound that the jutsu produces while being active, like birds chirping in the sky. That is why the name of that technique is… Chidori, one thousand birds,"_

 _Suddenly, Sasuke started running down the wall at an amazing speed while his left hand left marks on the concrete. The sand shield formed several pikes and attempted to stab Sasuke, who dodged them all with the use of his Sharingan. At last, Sasuke saw an opening and executed the jutsu that took him so long to dominate. The jutsu that would, unknowingly to him at the moment, become essential in his life as a shinobi. "HAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"_

 _PSSSSSSSSSSSSS_

 _Sasuke's hand penetrated the shield, splashing sand all over the place. The pikes that once tried to kill the Uchiha were now frozen, completely motionless. The eye that Gaara used to observe the outside crumbled until becoming particles of sand that the wind quickly blew away._

Fueled by resentment and unacknowledged jealousy, Shujinko tightened his fist and struck the upper half of the wooden training dummy, almost busting his fingers in the process. He then paused and looked at his swollen hands. They were trembling, not just out of pain, but out of anger and frustration. Why were Sasuke and Naruto so far up ahead all of a sudden? What was he doing wrong? What was the secret behind their progress? Was there even a secret at all?

" _HAAAAAAAAA!"_

 _Shujinko's mouth dropped as he saw the real Naruto coming from beneath the ground. Neji was completely taken by surprise, and was unable to do anything as Naruto delivered a punch that nearly dislocated his jaw. The Hyuuga landed on the ground with a loud THUD noise._

" _I-I cannot mo-move!" Neji said while coughing small amounts of blood._

 _Naruto said nothing. He was breathing heavily and wincing in pain as he looked at his bloody fingertips. Some of his nails were broken and his hands sported several scratches. In that moment, the 'Naruto' that was supposed to be unconscious poofed, leaving behind nothing but a trail of smoke that quickly vanished._

 _Genma's eyes widened slightly as he saw the hole in the crater. It all made sense now. During a specific instant, Naruto started digging a hole in order to disappear out of Neji's sight and left a clone in his place to cover it up. In the meantime, Naruto waited for the perfect opportunity to strike, and Neji took the bait._

"… _I should've known you were going to use the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. It is your specialty, after all… I was far too careless," Neji muttered._

"… _You wanna' know something funny? I failed the graduation exam three times in a row. It didn't matter how hard I tried, there was this one mandatory jutsu that I just couldn't do… My clones used to be pathetic. Even someone as serious as you would've laughed at them. So stop crying about the things you can't change and start changing the things you can… Because unlike me, no one has ever called you a failure,"_

"Fuuton: Dai Reppushoo!" Shujinko exclaimed, sending a mighty gust of wind towards the forest. The jutsu caused the tree branches to shake, and the leaves soon began to fall like the rain. Once the technique ended, Shujinko began to sweat, but he was far from being done. He was determined to continue until there were no leaves left to fall from the trees, even if he ended up exhausted. The brown-haired boy was about to repeat the same jutsu, but a voice from behind made him stop.

"It's a little late to start practicing your Ninjutsu, don't you think?"

Shujinko gasped. He turned around to see Kakashi holding his Icha-Icha, giving him the same look that parents gave their children when they were caught doing something they were not supposed to do. The golden-eyed boy quickly recovered from his shock and acknowledged his sensei with forced indifference. "Oh, it's you Kakashi-sensei,"

"What are you doing here?"

"You said it yourself. I'm just training my Ninjutsu,"

"I can see that. What I'm really asking is what are you doing here in the middle of the night when you should be in bed right now. You're violating the curfew,"

The Ozuma raised an eyebrow. "So are you, sensei,"

"Maybe, but us Jounins have certain privileges that Genins like you don't have. Now, will you answer my question or not?"

"I was just..." Shujinko tried to find an excuse that would get him off the hook, but he soon gave up. It was useless to try to lie to someone like Kakashi, who could see right through you like he had the Byakugan or something. And quite frankly, he was lucky to be found by his sensei and not someone else. Otherwise, his night could've been much worse. "… I needed to blow off some steam," he answered as sincerely as he could.

Kakashi looked at him with interest. "Is that so? And what is it that has got you so worked up?"

"… I just can't afford to be this far behind,"

"Behind who, exactly?"

"Behind Naruto and Sasuke!" Shujinko snapped, allowing his inner demons to come out. "Those two have changed. They're so much stronger now than they were before, and only after one month! How do you think that makes me feel?!" After taking a deep breath, Shujinko continued. "Look, I know I'm being selfish. I get it, I really do. I know I should be happy for them, but I'm not! I'm pissed off! I trained just as hard as they did, but compared to them, I barely improved! I… I don't understand. What do they have that I don't?"

The Copy-Ninja listened carefully. Of course, he should've known. There was no way someone like Shujinko would've felt comfortable knowing how much stronger both Naruto and Sasuke had become. And it was true, as both the Uchiha and the Uzumaki had grown significantly. Kakashi himself trained Sasuke while Jiraiya looked after Naruto and taught him a few things. Their growth was the result of their potential combined with the right teacher, one could say.

Kakashi understood what the Ozuma was going through. He knew Shujinko wasn't arrogant or obsessed with power, he just wanted to avoid being less than others. That was why Shujinko had very high standards for himself, maybe as a way to stand out and have equal recognition as those who had more experience and strength than him.

Despite being arguably one of the best Genins of his generation, Shujinko was still a kid entering puberty, and had the internal necessity to feel validated as a shinobi. While not exactly a staunch perfectionist, everyone could tell Shujinko had an aversion towards mediocrity and halfway-done things. He didn't feel the need to be the best at everything, but he certainly did feel the need to be great at what he did.

That need to be great at what he did was definitely a double-edged sword. The boy had never taken his talent for granted and constantly worked to stand out and be recognized as a skilled ninja, which was exactly what he was becoming. At the same time, he felt threatened when those around him outperformed him in the way Naruto and Sasuke did during the invasion. It made him feel inferior, and that was something Shujinko simply couldn't tolerate.

Some kid.

"Well, at least you finally got that out of your system," Kakashi began to say. "I have two advises for you. My first advice is that you need to control your feelings. Whether you like it or not, our actions have consequences for ourselves and those around us. If you allow your emotions to dictate what you do, you'll eventually make a mistake that will cost you dearly, and you won't be able to go back in time to prevent it. Your frustration and your anger don't grant you strength, they take it away from you,"

"They take it away from me? How?" Shujinko asked.

"You might believe that being angry makes you fight better or that it gives you more willpower. It doesn't. If you don't control your anger, it will burn your mind, and wherever your mind goes, your body follows,"

The silver-haired Jounin was absolutely right, Shujinko realized. Whenever he had to fight, he never did so in a state of anger or sadness or any similar emotion. He simply focused on finding a way to survive, to the point where his body practically moved on its own while he figured out what to do.

"You asked yourself why Naruto and Sasuke are different… and from my point of view, that seems to be the case. I can't help but notice there's one thing that, unlike those two, you don't have,"

The eyes of the brown-haired boy went wide. His heart started beating twice as hard as he was finally going to receive the answer he had been looking for. "You know? Then please, tell me what is it!"

"… A goal,"

…

Shujinko blinked once, twice, and then thrice. "Huh?"

"I believe the difference between you and them is that you don't really have a clear goal. When we first met, we talked about what we want to achieve in the future. Do you remember what you said?"

"… Well, yeah. I said I wanted to be the best shinobi I could be. What's wrong with that?"

The Hatake gave Shujinko a knowing look. "Technically, there's nothing wrong. But when you think about it, its a little… How should I put it? Ambiguous, compared to what Naruto and Sasuke are aiming for. Naruto wants to become Hokage, the strongest, most powerful ninja in all of Konoha. You don't achieve something like that without a tremendous effort from your part. Sasuke's goal, on the other hand, is to kill a certain someone. While his intentions may not be as noble as Naruto's, Sasuke knows what he wants and works tirelessly every day just so he can be closer to completing his goal. They both want to be the best shinobi they can be, just like you, but that's because they need to become the best shinobi they can be in order to achieve what they want. What about you? Why do you want to become the best shinobi you can be?"

The golden-eyed boy opened his mouth, but no word was spoken. He didn't have an answer to that question. Why did he want to become the best shinobi he could be? He didn't know why, he just wanted to. Shujinko wasn't interested in becoming Hokage, joining the ANBU, killing someone, or anything like that.

As a matter of fact, Shujinko had never given much thought about the future, as he saw little use on doing so. It wasn't like he had absolutely no interest in the future whatsoever, he simply prioritized the 'here and now' over the 'there and tomorrow'.

"That's my second advise to you," Kakashi said. "Find a goal, an actual goal, and push yourself every day until you achieve it. Don't allow your efforts to go to waste. Once you know where do you want to go, you'll find a way there,"

Shujinko bowed his head in deep meditation. Kakashi's advise made sense, but then what could possibly be his goal? He knew something as ludicrous as becoming the world's strongest shinobi wouldn't work. At the same time, his goal couldn't be something like obtaining the Chunin rank, for example, as he needed his goal to be more ambitious. It had to be unquestionably challenging, yet within the bounds of reason. 'But what can be my goal?' Shujinko asked himself, thinking about the hundreds of thousands of available objectives he could set for himself.

And then, after a minute or so of silence, the Ozuma's lips curled into a smirk. His goal was right in front of him.

"In that case, my goal now is to become stronger than you are, Kakashi-sensei. Just give me time and you'll see,"

Kakashi's only visible eye widened slightly before closing, making his trademark eye-smile. "That's a lot better. Well, now that we concluded our little chat together, you have to go back to your place before someone other than me catch you violating the curfew. And in case they ask, I haven't seen you at all. Ja ne!" Raising two fingers, the Copy-Ninja disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Without missing a beat, Shujinko entered the forest and started jumping from one tree branch to another, taking a shortcut to his house. And as he did so, a smile slowly started to creep into his face. He had a new goal, something he could actually aim for. Naruto wanted to become Hokage, Sasuke wanted to kill a certain someone and resurrect his clan, and now he wanted to be stronger than his sensei. Of course, it wasn't going to happen overnight. As a matter of fact, he had a whole mountain to climb, and he had just begun climbing it. But that didn't diminish his confidence or made him feel insecure. Instead, it motivated him because he knew that, given enough time and preparation, he would someday be on top of the mountain that his sensei represented.

"Someday..."

* * *

(The next day)

"Jiraiya, stop with that indecent behavior. There is something we need to talk about," Homura said. After hours of search, he and Koharu had finally found the Sannin, who was using a pair of binoculars to look at the female clients of the hot springs all the way from the Hokage Tower. During the invasion, he made sure that the village's hot springs were properly protected from any damage. Otherwise, he would've lost an enormous source of inspiration.

The Sannin sighed and turned around, taking off his binoculars. He stared at the two members of the council with a non-too friendly look on his face. He had never trusted those two old farts. "If you insist to interrupt me during my research, then it better be really important. What do you want?"

"You know very well what we are here to talk about, Jiraiya," Koharu replied. "We need to discuss the future of our village,"

Jiraiya groaned. "Oh boy, not this again. Look, Sunagakure has officially surrendered. They were tricked by Orochimaru, who killed the Kazekage and stole his appearance in order to impersonate him. They even sent the Kazekage's body here so that our top medic researchers could verify that it was him, which they did. And as far as I know, the peace talks with Sunagakure went off without a hitch. What else is left to discuss?"

"The negotiations with Sunagakure are a completely different topic. What we want to talk about is future leadership of the village," Homura said, using his sleeve to clean his glasses before speaking again. "Yesterday, we met with the Daimyo and his counselors. At the end of this emergency meeting, we decided that Konoha needs a strong leader during these times of hardship, and we also decided who that leader should be… Jiraiya, you are to become the Godaime Hokage. It is time for you to follow the footsteps of your sensei and look after the village like Hiruzen did,"

A dead silence reigned all over the Hokage Tower. Only the passing wind made any noise. Jiraiya's facial features had sharpened as he stared at both Koharu and Homura. The two members of the Council briefly exchanged looks, hoping that Jiraiya would understand the seriousness of the situation and accept the title of Hokage.

Their hopes vanished when Jiraiya waved his hand in a dismissing manner. "Yeah, that's not gonna work. Thanks for the offer, but being Hokage isn't really up my alley. You'll have to find someone else,"

"Jiraiya, it has already been decided. Besides, if not you, then who could possibly become the Hokage? No one else but a Sannin like yourself has what it takes to accept the position and make it work," Koharu countered.

The two of them were caught by surprise when Jiraiya smirked. "Well, if you're really that desperate to have one of the Sannin become Hokage, then maybe you should try talking to Tsunade. She's a Sannin as well, you know,"

"Tsunade? Senju Tsunade? In case you haven't noticed, she hasn't been in the village for years now. Her current location is a mystery, even to us. It would take a miracle from the skies to have her come here on her own free will and accept the job,"

"Which is precisely what's going to happen. In the next few hours, I'll be going on a little road trip of my own. If there's anyone who can find someone like Tsunade-hime, that's definitely me. Then, once she gets here, she'll become Hokage, and we're all gonna live happily ever after. How does that sounds?"

The two members of the Council knew it was useless to try and talk Jiraiya out of it. The white-haired pervert would rather find Tsunade, a woman who had disappeared from public life for more than a decade, than to become Hokage himself. And while she wasn't the ideal prospect, Jiraiya's old teammate was possibly one of the few alternatives that had what it took to become Hokage and be on the Daimyo's good side thanks to her Sannin status. "We will consider your proposal very carefully," Koharu said slowly. "In the meantime, we shall assemble a small squad of ANBU Black Ops to follow you while you search for Tsunade,"

"Nah, don't worry about it. I don't need an ANBU squad following me around like lost puppies. If anything, they would only get in my way… although, there's a certain someone I wouldn't mind having along for the ride,"

"Is that so?" Homura questioned with a raised eyebrow. "And who is this certain someone, if we may ask?"

A mischievous smirk was plastered on Jiraiya's face. "Not so long ago, I met a kid from around here. He's loud, obnoxious, and somewhat of a knucklehead. But still, we get along just fine,"

* * *

Many miles away of the village, two individuals were standing on top of a cliff, watching from afar the sorry state of Konohagakure after the invasion. These individuals wore black cloaks with red clouds on them, but despite wearing the same attire, they couldn't be more physically different. One was considerably taller than the other and had a huge sword covered in bandages strapped to his back. The other one looked much more normal, his red eyes being the only exception.

"Looks like they were able to survive… barely," Kisame stated out of the blue. "To think that many consider Konohagakure to be the most powerful village out of the five. I suppose my expectations were too high,"

"Not too long ago, it was at the peak of its glory," his companion said.

Kisame looked at his teammate with a crooked smile, showing off his shark-like set of teeth. "Tch, don't tell me coming here is making you remember your old life. Are you feeling homesick, Itachi?"

A pair of fully matured Sharingan stared right back at him. "No... Not in the slightest,"

* * *

Aaaaaaand that was the end of chapter 34.

As you can see, there wasn't a lot going on in this chapter. The Hokage funeral took place and now Itachi and Kisame have arrived. I wanted to focus on Shujinko's development as a character, and what he's going through right now.

I don't blame you if you thought this chapter was kind of boring. But then again, I had to do it that way to keep things realistic. The next chapter should be more exciting, so there's nothing to worry about.

Don't forget to Review, Favorite & Follow

Ja ne!


	35. Chapter 35

**CHAPTER 35: THE OTHER UCHIHA**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking / Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 **Demonic voice**

 _Letter_

* * *

Shujinko was casually walking down the streets of his village, admiring the recently-acquired headband that he received from Konoha's Shinobi Administration Department. He would soon be required to go on missions and he was obligated to wear his headband every time he was on duty. His new headband was exactly like the one he got when he graduated from the Academy, but still, he was a little disappointed for not being able to get his old headband back. He went back to where the explosion had taken place and searched for hours, but his headband was nowhere to be found.

'Well, there's nothing I can do about it. It's not like whining will get me anywhere,' Shujinko told himself as he put on his new headband.

As he reached the end of the street where the construction builders were still working, he was greeted by an interesting sight, to say the least. Naruto and Jiraiya were hanging out together near the backdoor exit of the village. For some reason, Naruto was carrying a huge backpack, so big and heavy that he could barely walk a few steps without getting tired. "What the heck is your problem, Ero-sennin? You told me to bring everything I needed for the trip! Why do you want me to unpack now?" Naruto protested.

"Are you kidding me? Look at the size of that thing. It looks like you're about to go on a trip around the world. Besides, that thing is definitely going to slow you down, and I don't have the time or the patience to wait for you as we go," Jiraiya retorted without missing a beat. "Go home, get rid of that ridiculous thing, and then come with only what you really need. Otherwise, I'm not taking you with me,"

While they were arguing back and forth, Shujinko's curiosity got the better of him, and before he knew it, he was already walking towards them. "Sorry, am I interrupting anything?" he asked once he was within hearing range, allowing his presence to be noted.

"Hey, I remember you. You're one of this gaki's teammates," Jiraiya said. "Can you knock some sense into him? This numskull won't listen to me,"

The Ozuma blinked. "Well, I'd be happy to, but I really don't know what's going on,"

Before Jiraiya could reply, Naruto had already opened his mouth. "Ero-sennin is taking me to Shukuba Town. We're supposed to find his ex-girlfriend or something, and he's gonna teach me super cool tech-"

BAAM

"Aaaaaarrgh!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head where Jiraiya had just slapped him. "What was that for, Ero-sennin?!"

"You little moron! If I'm taking you on a secret trip, you're supposed to keep our destination and our objective a secret! You can't just say it out loud!" the Sannin replied as his eyes were suddenly blank and perfectly round. He then looked at Shujinko, who had a huge drop of sweat coming down from his head, and let out a sigh. "Well, I guess there's no point in lying since you already heard Naruto. We're going to look for an old friend of mine, Senju Tsunade. Shukuba Town is our first stop,"

'Senju Tsunade… Where have I heard that name before?' Shujinko asked himself. For some reason, that name was sort of familiar to him. During his Academy days, he was introduced to the most important historical figures of the village, as well as others like the Daimyo, the monks of the Fire Temple, the founders of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, and a whole bunch of similar characters. Shujinko wasn't particularly passionate about History, so he could forgive himself for not knowing who this Tsunade was. 'Maybe Iruka-sensei mentioned it once during one of his classes'.

At least he knew what Shukuba Town was. He had visited Shukuba Town once during a school trip with the rest of his Academy classmates when they were kids. It was a place located around four miles away from Konoha, with lots of inns, hotels, restaurants, and other business of that nature. It also had lots of bars and illegal casinos where both foreigners and locals could test their luck and hopefully enjoy the company of a pretty woman.

"I know it's none of my business, but why do you want to find her, Jiraiya-sama?"

"Sorry gaki, but I wouldn't like it if rumors about me leaving the village were to be spread. You and everyone else will be better off by remaining unaware," Jiraiya said before looking at Naruto. "Anyhow, if you still want me to teach you along the way, you'll have to get over yourself and do as I say. Go unpack now, and for Kami's sake, bring only what you need. Hurry up before I get old,"

The Uzumaki muttered something before finally complying with Jiraiya. With a remarkably annoyed look on his face, Naruto began his way home, carrying his enormous backpack and whispering to himself a few distasteful remarks regarding the Sannin.

Shujinko's mouth twitched in jealousy at the idea of Naruto being Jiraiya's personal student and following him to where he was going. He was going to learn an awful lot of awesome techniques, that was for sure. However, his jealousy only lasted for a few seconds as he took a deep breath and recalled Kakashi's advice to him. He had to control his emotions and focus on his new goal. Being jealous wouldn't help him in any possible way.

Feeling like his presence there was no longer needed (not like it was ever needed in the first place), the golden-eyed boy said goodbye to Jiraiya and wished him good luck. It was still early in the morning, and since he wasn't taking any missions, he decided to be useful and started helping in the reconstruction of the village, as there was still work that needed to get done.

* * *

(Later, at 13:30 P.M.)

"Boy, I can't wait to get my hands on some of that good stuff," Shujinko said to Masao as he waited for his order to be ready. After hours of hard labor, the golden-eyed boy developed an appetite and decided to treat himself with some delicious sushi at his favorite sushi bar, Yoi Sakana's. "Oi, Masao, is it going to take much more time?"

"Get a grip, will ya'?" Masao replied all the way from the kitchen. "I can cook fast, and I can cook properly, not both,"

While the place itself didn't suffer a lot of damage during the invasion, the number of clients dropped significantly as most villagers were too busy working to get their business back or looking for a new job. Most of the civilian working class of Konoha didn't have the time to eat at Yoi Sakana's, and given how humble his business was, Masao wouldn't hold his breath waiting for any royalty to come and spend their money on his dishes.

After what Shujinko deemed to be an eternity, the chef finally brought him the dish he asked for. Ever since the invasion took place, the villagers had to preserve as much food as they could, including Masao. That was why he had to replace some ingredients with cheaper ones, as well as making the dishes slightly smaller. Shujinko didn't care. The food still looked delicious.

"Finally!" Shujinko exclaimed as he grabbed the chopstick, drooling like a dog staring at a fine piece of meat. "Itadakimasu!"

But before he could enjoy his meal, the door of the sushi bar was slammed open. The Ozuma looked over his shoulder and was thoroughly surprised to see who had just barged in. It was none other than Sasuke.

"Sasuke, what are you doi-"

"Shujinko, have you seen Naruto?!"

The brown-haired boy was confused, to say the least. Sasuke looked scandalized as if he had just heard terrible news for him or something. Whatever the case, it was clear that Sasuke was not being his usual self. "Why? Did something happened?"

"There's no time to explain! Have you seen Naruto or not?!" Sasuke demanded, grabbing his teammate's shoulders and giving him a firm shake.

"Get off me!" the Ozuma shouted as he pushed Sasuke back, getting rid of the grip he had on him. He had no idea what the hell was going on, but he didn't appreciate having his sushi interrupted in such a way. "Naruto isn't here. He left with Jiraiya-sama not too long ago. They're supposed to be in Shukuba Town right now. But why do you-"

Before he could finish his question, Sasuke was already gone. He left as fast as he came, like a breeze of air during an autumn afternoon.

"Strange kid," Masao commented. "Ain't he your teammate or somethin'?"

"Yeah. I don't know what's gotten into him," Shujinko said, still baffled by what had just happened.

Masao shrugged. "Who knows, who cares. Ye' should start eating before it gets cold,"

The golden-eyed boy slowly nodded and picked up the chopsticks from the floor. He started eating his meal, but instead of enjoying his favorite food, he thought about his teammate and what could've possibly made him act in such an uncharacteristic manner.

Why was Sasuke so eager to find Naruto? Usually, it was the other way around. Sasuke only seemed to interact with his teammates and sensei when Team 7 was out on a mission, and even then he was detached from them. As a matter of fact, this had to be the first time Sasuke had ever asked for Naruto, and he even went as far as asking Shujinko if he knew where he was, hoping that his teammate knew about the Uzumaki's location.

At first, Shujinko thought that Sasuke may have fallen victim of one of Naruto's pranks, but that was only a small possibility at best. Ever since he became a full-fledged shinobi, Naruto seemed to have taken a break from pulling pranks on people as he now had to focus on his training. Besides, it took more than just a silly prank to get that kind of reaction out of Sasuke. No, it had to be something else.

Masao lifted an eyebrow as he saw his favorite client suddenly standing up, leaving his half-finished meal behind. "What is it? Somethin' wrong with the food?"

"It's alright. I'm not really hungry right now," Shujinko said as he left a couple of bills on the table. "Thanks for everything. See ya later," Before Masao could ask him if he was feeling okay, Shujinko had already left the establishment.

As he aimlessly walked the streets of the village, an ever-growing feeling of uneasiness was taking over Shujinko. The behavior Sasuke had displayed wasn't just weird, it was worrying. His teammate would never show any emotions unless the situation was dire, so for him to openly show distress and desperation meant something truly disturbing was going on… and Naruto was somehow involved in it.

'But he can't be in danger, right?' Shujinko asked himself before vigorously shaking his head. 'Of course he's not in danger, you baka. He's traveling with Jiraiya-sama. With someone like him on his side, I can't imagine anyone being able to hurt him,'

That was what he believed… to a degree. It was true that Naruto was more than capable of looking after himself, with and without Jiraiya. However, Naruto was also extremely gifted in the arts of getting in trouble. And in a place like Shukuba Town, who knew what kind of person Naruto could run into… and there was also the whole Sasuke thing to take into account.

Shujinko stopped in the middle of the street. He couldn't take another step without getting more worried than what he already was. A relentless sensation of uncertainty was eating him inside, and as he turned around, he realized he had to do follow his instincts.

He had to go to Shukuba Town.

Ignoring the confused looks he received from the villagers that happened to be near him, Shujinko turned around and began running in the opposite direction. Since most of the buildings were either destroyed beyond repair or being reconstructed, he couldn't use the rooftops to shorten the distance between where he was and the village's exit.

Once he got there, Shujinko made sure to carefully sneak out, not wanting to look more suspicious than what he already did. He waited for the guards to turn around, and when they did, the Ozuma made use of his stealth skills (which were rather rusty, to be honest) and got away without getting caught.

It wasn't complicated to reach Shukuba Town since most of the road was a straight line with only a few turns here and there, all of them with signs indicating the path. Shujinko wasn't afraid of getting lost, but as he headed to Shukuba Town, he began to doubt himself. The place he was going to was fairly big, and while it was true someone like Naruto wasn't hard to miss due to his orange outfit, it could take him hours to find him. And what if Naruto and Jiraiya had already left the place? Jiraiya made it perfectly clear Shukuba Town was their first stop, meaning they were not going to stay there forever.

'It doesn't matter. I still need to go there, if only just to meet Sasuke and ask him what the hell he's up to,' Shujinko told himself as he made sure not to slow down. If Sasuke had yet to arrive at Shukuba Town, then he was damn close to the place, whereas he had barely reached half of the way. He wasn't using his full speed as he had no idea what was he going to do later on, but something was telling him he was going to need his chakra.

Finally, after minutes of traveling at a fast pace, he entered Shukuba Town. The place was packed with foreigners and travelers. It made sense since Shukuba Town was a business-focused town that owed its economy to the number of outsiders that came there. Shujinko gritted his teeth in frustration. 'How in the world am I supposed to find them?'

He activated the Karura Tensei and tried to sense either Sasuke's or Naruto's chakra, but as he expected, it was useless. Those two could be anywhere, and he could only sense chakra signatures within a reduced area. For him, sensing chakra signatures was like hearing the voices of people he knew. For example, he was pretty sure he could recognize Naruto's voice anywhere, but only within a certain distance. If Naruto was way too far from where he was, he wouldn't be able to hear his voice. It was the same thing with chakra signatures.

'Screw this. I'll have to go look around, even if it takes me the whole day,'

Still in Sage Mode, Shujinko jumped and landed on top of a restaurant. His plan was to hop from one building to another while looking at the streets for someone with spiky, blonde hair or someone with long, white hair. Naruto and Jiraiya were pretty easy to recognize, and they were most likely together, so if he found one of them, finding the other one was going to be simple.

As he searched for them, the golden-eyed boy berated himself for not bringing Kakashi with him. With the use of Pakkun, they would've had no problem finding Naruto, Sasuke or Jiraiya. Then again, he would've had to find Kakashi first back in Konoha, and he was running out of time.

While seeing people jump from one building to another was a daily thing in the village, it was a bizarre sight behold here in Shukuba Town. People were pointing their fingers at him, and while the little kids thought it was awesome, the adults were shouting at him, either telling him to stop before he got injured or that he was going to damage private property. Either way, Shujinko was too focused on his search to care for what they were saying or thinking.

After fifteen minutes of intense parkour, Shujinko was beginning to worry. He couldn't find any of them, for Kami's sake! He wasn't expecting to find them right away, but this was just ridiculous. By now, rumors of a kid jumping from one rooftop to another had already spread, and the local guards were looking for him. 'At this rate, it's gonna take me forever to...'

And then, his sensory abilities caught something. It was like a weak, hollow whisper of a child, but it was still there. He tried to pinpoint the exact location, and while he couldn't do it at first, there was no need for him to do so.

BOOOOOOM

There was a small explosion in one of Shukuba Town's many hotel rooms, leaving one huge hole in the wall. Shujinko saw this and immediately approached the scene. And as he came closer, he finally picked up both Naruto's and Sasuke's chakra signatures, along with three others that were unknown to him.

'Just a little longer… Just a little longer...'

SWOOOOSH

Shujinko entered the hotel through the hole in the wall that was caused by the explosion. He was not expecting to see what he saw.

Inside the hotel, he found himself in a very, very strange situation. To his left, Jiraiya was standing behind Naruto, who at the same time was standing behind a huge frog wearing a samurai armor, who at the same time was protecting Naruto from a strange (and freakishly tall) guy who was wielding a giant sword wrapped in bandages and wearing a black coat with red clouds. Next to Jiraiya was an unconscious woman who, by the looks of it, was a civilian.

To his right, another guy wearing the same black coat was standing there. Close to him was Sasuke, whose left wrist was twisted in a horrible way, indicating it was fractured. Sasuke was sitting at the end of the hallway with his back against the wall, his head hanging low.

Regardless of how unexpected everything was, one thing was clear. He was in danger.

"Shujinko!" Naruto shouted, not knowing whether to feel relieved or worried.

Jiraiya groaned. 'Damn it! He's not supposed to be here at all! What is he doing?!'

"Nhn, brats just keep on coming," the tall guy with the sword said."Listen up, gaki. I don't know what do you think you're doing, but you better leave before it gets ugly. I don't usually go around killing worthless Genins like you, but I have no problem making an exception,"

The Ozuma wanted to respond to that threat with a threat of his own, but he instantly closed his mouth after taking a good look Kisame. Not only was he the tallest man Shujinko had ever seen, but he also had shark-like facial features that made him look intimidating as hell. His weird sword was even wider than Zabuza's Kubikiribōchō, and Kisame was holding the thing with only one hand, meaning he had to be crazy strong. The brown-haired boy was starting to get scared, but he held his ground and tried his best not to show any emotions other than defiance and confidence. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

"Gaki, stay away from them!" Jiraiya shouted. "Those two are missing-nins, they'll take you out before you know it!"

'Missing-nins?' Shujinko repeated inside his head. The last missing-nin he fought was Zabuza, and that guy used to be one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. Had it not been for Kakashi and the rest of Team 7, Zabuza would've killed him in a matter of seconds. Orochimaru didn't really count since the Snake Sannin was only testing both him and Sasuke back in the Forest of Death. Shujinko looked at Kisame, who had a crooked line carved across his headband. He supposed that was the mark of a missing-nin.

"Haaaaaaah!" With incredible speed, Sasuke suddenly got up and went straight ahead, intending to inflict as much damage as he could upon Itachi, even if he couldn't use his left wrist. Itachi merely kicked Sasuke and sent him flying back to where he was. Sasuke's back crashed against the wall, and Shujinko saw how his teammate coughed out a small chunk of blood. The Ozuma couldn't believe his eyes. Whoever that guy was, he got rid of Sasuke without breaking a sweat!

"Go away. I have no interest in you at the moment," Itachi said. His voice was like a ghost's whisper, completely detached from emotions.

Sasuke struggled to get up, feeling how his rage and his anger were boiling inside of him. This was his chance to get revenge, his chance to kill his brother and fulfill his destiny. For whatever reason, Itachi had finally shown up, and now that his brother was right in front of him, Sasuke refused to allow this opportunity to go to waste. His calm and collected demeanor had been replaced by an intense hatred that clouded his judgment, but who could blame him? This was the man who slaughtered his entire family. The image of his parents lying dead on the floor and his desire to kill Itachi pushed Sasuke to his limits, despite the difference in power between the two of them. "… Well get interested!"

Letting out a war cry, the young Uchiha charged again, only to be stopped yet again by Itachi, who buried his fist deep into Sasuke's stomach and leaving him unable to breathe. With his free hand, the murderer of the Uchiha clan punched Sasuke across his face.

Shujinko watched how Itachi effortlessly gave Sasuke a beating, his hands clenched in fists of rage. The longer he stood there doing nothing, the angrier he became. He had no idea why Sasuke was so dead-set on fighting this missing-nin so desperately, but that didn't matter right now. The golden-eyed boy refused to allow one of his teammates to get killed right in front of his eyes without at least trying to help.

"That's enough! Leave Sasuke alone, you bastard!" Shujinko said as Itachi finished beating up Sasuke. Not knowing what he was getting into, the Ozuma charged against Itachi while crossing his fingers. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

POOF

A shadow clone came into existence right next to Shujinko. Since he couldn't perform any wind jutsus without taking the risk of hurting Sasuke, he had to engage Itachi in a close-range combat with the help of his clone. While his clone covered Itachi's right flank, Shujinko would attack his left side. Ignoring Jiraiya's warnings, the Ozuma pulled out a kunai and jumped towards his target while his clone did the same.

BAAM

Even with his enhanced eyesight and reflexes granted by the Karura Tensei, Shujinko was unable to visualize Itachi's movements. In less than a second, the member of the Akatsuki grabbed both him and his clone and made them bash each other's heads. The clone disappeared immediately while Shujinko was left grunting in pain on the hotel floor, unable to understand how could someone move that fast. His body reacted quickly, but as he opened his eyes, he felt an excruciating and horrible pain between his ribs.

"Haaaggh-Aggggh..." Shujinko couldn't breathe. Itachi was standing in front of him, holding a sword that went right through his stomach. Blood soon began to pour out of his wound and mouth, staining his clothes and later the floor. Itachi quickly pulled out the sword, and Shujinko felt the cold blade inside of him slicing his flesh.

"There was no reason for you to interfere," Itachi whispered, not a single drop of remorse to be found in his voice.

But Shujinko couldn't hear him. He dropped to his knees and placed both his hands on the wound, covering his palms with his blood. Still not breathing, and still shaking in agony, he looked at the face of his killer one last time as his vision grew darker and darker.

The last thing Shujinko saw before everything went pitch black were a shiny pair of red eyes, both of them sporting three tomoes…

* * *

'… Am I… dead?'

If this was death, it sure wasn't what Shujinko was expecting. He felt awkward, like he was beginning to wake up from a drug-induced state of sleep. After a while, he tried wiggling his fingers, and he confirmed that he still had his sense of touch as his fingers sensed a smooth and soft texture, although he still couldn't quite determine what it was that he was touching. As time went by, his body started to warm up and his sense of reason slowly began to kick in. He had yet to open his eyes, mainly out of fear, as he didn't know what was he going to see next.

'Alright Shujinko, you're going to wake up at the count of three. One… Two… Three!'

Shujinko opened his eyes. His vision was blurry for a while, and he saw nothing but a shade of white. After half a minute of blinking, the Ozuma realized he was staring at a ceiling. He turned his head and saw a small nightstand right next to him, with flowers on top. The soft texture he previously felt were the bed sheets of the bed he was sleeping in, and Shujinko realized where he was right away, as he recognized his surroundings immediately.

He was in the hospital.

'But what the hell am I doing here? How did I even got here in the first place?' Shujinko asked himself, feeling both surprised and annoyed. He wasn't particularly fond of waking up in the hospital without any knowledge of the events that eventually led him there. He remembered chasing after Sasuke, arriving at Shukuba Town, looking for Naruto and Sasuke, finding both of them in a hotel while a fight was going on, two strange-looking guys, Sasuke getting beat up by one of them, and then…

The golden-eyed boy jumped back in his seat, letting out a frightened yelp as he remembered what happened to him back in Shukuba Town. One of the missing-nins, the one with shiny red eyes and jet-black hair, was mercilessly attacking Sasuke, and when he decided to step up and intervene, the same shinobi drew a sword and stabbed him. The pain he experienced was on a whole other level, and his blood was all over the place. Everything went dark after that.

Fearing for his life, Shujinko lifted up his hospital shirt and looked at his stomach… only to be left puzzled. There were no wounds, no scars, no blood, no bandages, no pain, no nothing. His fingers roamed all over where his injury was supposed to be, and yet he couldn't feel anything, as if nothing had ever happened.

Did he survive? But that was impossible. That missing-nin pierced his stomach with a freaking sword, and the pain he experienced when the blade went through his body was overwhelmingly real and vivid. Even if by some miracle the Shinigami had decided not to take his soul that day, an injury like that should've left a scar or a mark at the very least, but his body was in perfect condition.

'What in the name of Kami is going on?!'

While he was still getting over the fact that he was somehow still alive and healthy, the door in front of him opened and a young nurse walked into the room. Her face brightened up when she saw Shujinko standing up and moving. "Oh, you're awake. That's good news," she said before quickly grabbing a notepad and a pen from her bag. "Can you see clearly? Do you have any hearing problems?"

"I'm alright… I guess," Shujinko answered dubiously. "Can you please tell me what happened?"

The nurse checked her notepad. "According to what it says here, you were at the receiving end of a Genjutsu that knocked you unconscious. You've been asleep for two days now,"

"G-Genjutsu?" Shujinko repeated in disbelief. That probability never occurred to him, mainly because his experience with the missing-nin felt far too real to even consider a Genjutsu. On the other hand, a Genjutsu would explain why he didn't actually die or why he suffered no injuries whatsoever. 'But I felt it. That sword went right through me, I know it did. How can an illusion physically hurt somebody?'

However, Shujinko knew very well he wasn't an expert on the subject. As a matter of fact, he recognized Genjutsu was one of his weaknesses since he didn't spend much time working on either casting them or breaking free of them. That was his fault, although he had the feeling no amount of training would've helped him against a Genjutsu of that caliber.

'I wonder if that Genjutsu would affect Naruto and Sasuke the same way,' the Ozuma though carelessly before his eyes went wide. "Naruto and Sasuke! Where are they?! What happened to them?!"

"Calm down, please. We're in a hospital," the nurse said, raising her hands in an appeasing manner.

"I don't care! Tell me where my teammates are, lady!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that. You see, our patients need to rest and we still haven't figured out what visiting hours are avai-" the nurse's words fell on deaf ears. Before she could finish her sentence, Shujinko had already left. "Wait, you're still not allowed to leave!"

'Screw you,' Shujinko thought as he ran away from his hospital room, wearing nothing but his pajamas. If that nurse wasn't going to tell him where his friends were, then he would have to find them on his own, even if that meant knocking on every door he came across.

Of course, that was easier said than done. There was no point in asking the clinical staff for information since they would only tell him to get back in bed, and even if he used the Henge no Jutsu to change his appearance, that wouldn't guarantee him the answers he was looking for. Truth be told, he had no idea how he was supposed to find them, but he was officially on the run now, and he was too proud to go back to his room and apologize to the nurse for escaping.

There were only a handful of individuals in the hospital, most of them civilians who were rather curious as to why he was running but didn't really care enough to actually do something about it. The real trouble began when he passed right in front of the waiting room. Two Chunins who were asked to keep an eye on the hospital saw him and started chasing the Ozuma.

"Oi, stop right there! Come here immediately!" one of them shouted. Shujinko paid no mind to his persecutors and kept on running, taking multiple turns in order to distract them.

After several minutes of running and entering random doors, Shujinko looked over his shoulder and saw with satisfaction that the Chunins were no longer behind his tail, and had presumably given up on finding him. His satisfaction was short-lived, however. Before Shujinko could focus his gaze on what was in front of him, he crashed into someone and ended up sitting on the ground.

BAAM

"Ooff!"

Shujinko could've sworn he had accidentally run into a wall or something. The figure in front of him was wearing a grey uniform underneath a black coat. The Genin recognized his face immediately.

"Well well well, looks like someone was a little too eager to get out of the hospital," Ibiki said with that particularly intriguing voice that he had. "What are you doing here, gaki?"

"M-Me? Nothing. I was just-"

"Save your explanations for later. I'm taking you back to your room,"

"But-"

"No buts allowed. Come on, get going,"

"It's alright, Ibiki. Let the kid alone," a voice from behind said. Shujinko turned his head around and saw Asuma holding a cigarette with his lips, followed by Kurenai and Gai. Since they were in a hospital, Asuma refrained himself from lighting up the cigarette, but he still liked to pretend like he was smoking.

Ibiki gave Asuma a questioning look. "Is he with you, Asuma?"

"That's right. We need to discuss a thing or two with him," Asuma replied. "Don't worry, he'll be back in his room before you even know it,"

The Tokubetsu Jounin raised an eyebrow, but after a while, he shrugged his shoulders and walked away. "Suit yourself. My job here is done anyways,"

'That was a close one,' Shujinko thought as he stood up and removed the dust from his pajamas. The idea of going back to his room with Ibiki was not a pleasant one, not by a long shot. "Thanks for helping me out, Asuma-sensei. I owe you one,"

"Don't mention it, but I wasn't lying when I said we need to talk to you about something," Asuma's eyes transmitted nothing but seriousness, and Shujinko soon found out why. "It's about Sasuke,"

Shujinko's face was a poem. "Do you know where Sasuke is? What happened to him?" Despite still being anxious, Shujinko decided not to run away a second time. Besides, the least he could do was to listen to what Asuma had to say, if anything, as a way of thanking him for saving him from Ibiki's clutches.

"Not here," Asuma responded, gesturing the door at the end of the hallway with a short facial motion.

Gulping, Shujinko made his way to the door and opened it. The room itself had nothing special as it was the same as the rest. At first, the Ozuma believed Asuma told him to get inside just so they could talk in private, but everything changed when he realized he was not the only person in the room.

Sasuke was there as well, lying in bed with his eyes closed, seemingly asleep.

"Sasuke!" Shujinko shouted at the top of his lungs, running towards him. "Thank Kami you're okay! What happened to you?"

But Sasuke did not reply. In fact, he didn't even move or bothered to acknowledge Shujinko, who was eagerly waiting for his answer. The Uchiha simply continued to sleep with his mouth just slightly open. There were several plastic tubes attached to Sasuke that were being used to feed him and help him breathe.

"Come on, wake up! You can go back to sleep later! I-"

"Stop. He's not listening to you," Kurenai said behind his back, "To be precise, he can't listen to any of us,"

Shujinko turned around, his face showing nothing but confusion and fear. "Why? Why won't he wake up?"

"He's comatose. His mind has basically shut down and has no consciousness whatsoever," Kurenai said with a firm, yet soft voice. It wasn't easy to explain to Shujinko how critical Sasuke was, and she could only guess what was going on inside his head as he heard her words. At the same time, she knew there was no use in sugarcoating things, for that was not the way of the shinobi."Ibiki was here concluding the harm done to Sasuke's mind given that mental torture is his specialty. His psyche is seriously damaged, and we have no way to know when he will wake up," Kurenai was kind enough to change her last sentence, as the proper statement would be 'if he will wake up at all'. Cases of comatose people dying were not unheard of, after all, but there was no reason for Kurenai to be so heartless.

Shujinko gulped in disbelief, unable to comprehend what Kurenai was telling him. Actually, he completely understood what he was being told, but he didn't want to. He was frightened by the idea of Sasuke spending several years in bed, with digestive tubes and breathing mechanisms keeping him clinically alive. The thought was too much for him to bare, so he switched his focus to another subject. "What happened to Naruto? And where is Kakashi-sensei?"

Gai responded this time. "Thanks to Jiraiya-sama, Naruto was left unscathed. They still have yet to come back though, and we cannot say for certain when they will. As for Kakashi..." Gai's face hardened at the mention of his rival. "... He was attacked by the same individual that cast his Genjutsu on you. He is also deeply weakened and in need of assistance, just like Sasuke-kun,"

"W-What?! Kakashi-sensei too?!" Shujinko said out loud, more impressed than anything else. He couldn't conceive the idea of someone being strong enough to leave his sensei, one of the strongest shinobi he knew, in such a state.

Despite how utterly unpleasant it was, the Ozuma recalled the events that took place in Shukuba Town. His mind was a tad bit foggy, but he could still remember the shiny-red eyes of that man that used Genjutsu to knock him unconscious. He had only seen those eyes before in Sasuke when he activated his Sharingan, and maybe he was a bit crazy for thinking this, but Shujinko was fairly certain those were the same eyes as Sasuke's. Even their facial features were alike. The resemblance between the two of them was way too striking to ignore it.

'But that can't be it. The Uchiha clan was wiped out years ago. Except for Sasuke, there aren't any members of the Uchiha clan left, unless...'

" _What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan, and kill a certain someone,"_

" _Sasuke, snap out of it! Don't you want to revive your clan?! Don't you want to grow strong enough to kill that man?! You're always talking about the strength of the Uchiha clan, and now it's time for you to prove it! If you keep running away like a frightened rabbit, she'll kill you and the Uchiha clan will be no more! DEAD PEOPLE CAN'T AVENGE ANYONE, SASUKE!"_

" _He's still out there... My brother..."_

" _Go away. I have no interest in you at the moment,"_

In that moment, in that precise instant, Shujinko understood. He understood who was that person was, but he still wanted to have his suspicions confirmed. "That guy who attacked Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei... the one who used Genjutsu on me... it was Sasuke's brother, right?"

The three Jounins remained silent and shared a complicit look. Knowing what he was getting into, Asuma walked past Shujinko, reached the other side of the room and opened the window, allowing a gentle breeze from the exterior to come inside. He took out a lighter from one of his pockets and started smoking, ignoring the reproachful look Kurenai was giving him behind his back. He once promised her he would stop smoking whenever she was around, but these situations were simply much easier to go through with the help of his unhealthy habit. After taking a long puff, Asuma cleared his throat. "Correct. That man was Uchiha Itachi, a missing-nin who ran away from the village years ago,"

Shujinko, who was already expecting this answer, still felt like a bag of bricks had just fallen on top of his head. That man was none other than Sasuke's brother, the only family he had left... and the only family he had left was a traitor to the village who left his very own brother in a comma. He placed his hand behind his head, feeling a little dizzy by the magnitude of the revelation. Truth be told, he was starting to regret knowing these things. He didn't know what to think anymore.

"But worry not, young one! There is still hope!" Gai's booming voice vastly overturned the gloomy atmosphere, effectively startling everyone around (including the nurses outside that happened to be nearby). "Jiraiya-sama and Naruto-kun have bowed to bring Tsunade-sama over to the village. She is the most renowned medic-nin in all of history, and if there is anyone who can help us with this, it is most definitely her. She will be able to heal Sasuke-kun and Kakashi... as well as Lee," he said after a second thought.

Shujinko turned around and stared at Gai, his anguish momentarily forgotten. Before he left the village with Naruto, Jiraiya told him they were searching for a woman called Tsunade, who used to be the Sannin's teammate back in the day. So this lady was a superb medic, good enough for Jiraiya to go after her even if she had disappeared from public life.

However, there was something that had yet to be answered. Both the Sannin and the Uzumaki left the village before Sasuke was left in a comma. Therefore, there had to be another reason for Jiraiya to find that Tsunade lady, other than the fact that she may or may not be capable of helping out with the health of Sasuke and Kakashi. Shujinko highly doubted the Gama Sennin just wanted to catch up with her old teammate, as the timing of his departure was suspiciously spot on.

Don't get him wrong. After taking in all the news, Shujinko was more than pleased to hear that there was someone out there that could possibly bring his teammate and his sensei back to normal, but he simply couldn't help but pick up on that sort of details. He was a shinobi, after all, and his mind was practically conditioned to become aware of any inconsistencies in the information he received. In order to prevent being taken by surprise (both during a mission and while he was off-duty), Shujinko often over-analyzed or questioned almost everything he heard or saw.

"Do we know when they're going to come back?" Shujinko asked after a while.

Kurenai shook her head. "Tsunade-sama has been missing for quite a while now. It's not easy to find someone who has spent several years of her life traveling from town to town, and even from one country to another. But Jiraiya-sama is by far our best spy. Given enough time, he will find out where she's hiding. To convince her to come here, however, is an entirely different subject,"

'She has to. She's the only one who can help us,' the Ozuma thought, hanging on to the only hope he had left. '... Naruto, it's time for you to do what you do best. I'm trusting you,'

* * *

Aaaaaaand that was the end of chapter 35.

I have to admit, I'm not exactly thrilled with the way this chapter ended. It's not easy to produce top-quality content while you have to attend class and do your homework. But at least it's finally over and I can start working on the next chapter, which will hopefully be more interesting and less time-demanding.

This chapter was a tough one. Shujinko found himself in situations that he wasn't supposed to be involved in, but for the sake of this story's entertainment value, I just had to put him out there where the action was, even if his presence didn't really change much of the canon storyline. Hopefully, you'll understand me.

Don't forget to Follow, Favorite & Review.

Ja ne!


	36. Chapter 36

**CHAPTER 36: A NEW TECHNIQUE**

* * *

(Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I do own my OC's, however)

"Talking / Jutsu"

'Thinking'

' _Flashback'_

" _Flashback talk"_

 **Demonic voice**

 _Letter_

* * *

The young Ozuma was currently inside his bedroom, sitting at his desk while a dozen of books and scrolls were lying on the floor, some of them closed and some of them open in a random page. Shujinko was reading one of the Academy books he kept in store, hoping to find any new information about anything that could help him, but so far, his research had proven to be fruitless. 'I already know about this stuff,' Shujinko groaned in frustration as he closed the book titled _Ninjutsu Theory and Application_. 'Nothing here is worth my time,'

Ever since the invasion took place, Shujinko was determined not to fall behind Naruto and Sasuke, whose skills had improved by leaps and bounds compared to his. However, there was one big issue that was preventing him from moving forward: How was he supposed to improve?

His sensei was out of commission and, therefore, unable to talk to him, let alone teach him something new. Naruto was still traveling with Jiraiya, Sasuke was comatose, and Sakura was feeling way too emotional to actually do anything, due to Sasuke's current state. Almost every Jounin and Chunin were away from the village, working overtime to make up for the tremendous damage caused to the village's infrastructure, and the few of them who were not on a mission had no reason to help him at all. There was virtually no one who had the time nor the inclination to train him.

As a consequence of that, Shujinko was on his own, at least for the time being. There wasn't a lot that he could do about his abilities like shuriken-throwing and Taijutsu as there was nothing left for him to learn, at least not now. He wanted to learn something new, something that could give him the edge during a battle. But in order to achieve that, he needed a source of information, whether it came from a person or a scroll. He didn't mind not having someone to guide him as he was confident he could teach himself, just like he had taught himself several techniques in the past. However, he needed at least some indications to work with.

"Screw this," Shujinko muttered as he stood up from his desk and made himself comfortable in his bed. He wanted to be angry, and he was, but most of all, he was feeling hopeless. Team 7 was more distanced than ever, and although he had faith that better times would eventually come, he just couldn't sit on his ass and do nothing.

He turned his head around and stared at the framed pictures that were on his nightstand. The first one was a picture taken the day Team 7 was officially born after passing the bell test. Kakashi gave each and every one of his students a copy of the picture as a gift. At the time, Shujinko merely thought of the picture as a nice little detail, nothing too special. But after everything he and his teammates went through, he now found himself longing for the good old days when his biggest worries were to catch cats and clean polluted rivers. 'Everything was so much simpler back then,'

The second picture was taken years ago when Shujinko was still a snot-nosed brat working his way to the top in the Academy. His father Daichi was standing behind him, placing one hand on his shoulder and carrying his usual, almost blank facial expression. Daichi had always been a serious individual due to his messed up past growing up as an 'undesirable' among the Ozuma clan for not being able to awaken the Karura Tensei like the rest of his family, so he really couldn't be blamed for not being the happiest fella around. Masumi, his mother, was holding a toddler Nanami with one arm and placing her free hand on Shujinko's other shoulder. As for Shujinko, he was in the center of the picture with his hands on his hips and showing a toothy grin.

Shujinko smiled softly. He remembered being very happy that day, although he couldn't exactly remember what he was so happy about. Now, he couldn't remember the last time he felt truly and genuinely happy like he used to be.

His gaze focused on his father. It was kind of weird how he knew very little about his past, which was primarily his fault for not asking. Then again, Daichi rarely asked him about his missions, so one could say they were even. The only time Daichi had told him about his life was when Shujinko was introduced to the Karura Tensei and the history of the Ozuma clan.

" _... The years went by, and war seemed inevitable. A handful of well-known clans offered my father to form an alliance with them. Of course, my father refused every single petition, stating that 'the Ozuma clan had no need to join forces with inferior clans'. The other members thought the same way he did, obviously. Only my mother and I were able to see the bigger picture, and she feared for the future and survival of our family. Because of that, she revealed to me a secret: She had been gathering all the information about the Ozuma clan behind my father's back, including our history and our techniques. She hoped that the memory of our clan wouldn't fade away because of the war and entrusted me with the task of keeping our archives safe. Nyoko was a visionary woman and knew what would most likely happen to our clan. That was the reason why she wanted me to learn about commerce, so that I could make a living and keep the Ozuma name alive..."_

As he kept remembering the rest of the conversation, Shujinko's eyes suddenly widened in surprise and immediately jumped out of bed. 'Of course! Why didn't I think of this before?!'

Rushing down the stairs, he saw his father was about to live the house and begin his daily business routine. "Tou-san!"

Daichi turned around. "What is it, son?"

"Do you remember that day you told me about the history of our clan and everything? You know, when I returned from that mission in Nami no Kuni,"

"I do. Where is this question coming from?"

"You said something about Nyoko-baa-san entrusting you with the archives of our clan so that they wouldn't be erased from existence. Do you have them here? Can I take a look?"

Daichi frowned upon hearing Shujinko's petition. Certainly, a strange one considering the fact that his son had never been particularly interested in their clan's history. "I do have them in my possession, but why do you want them so bad?"

"Does it really matter why?" Shujinko asked back, his anxiety getting the better of him. "I just want to examine them, that's all. I swear it's only gonna take me a while. Come on, please?"

Father and son stared at each other as if they were trying to guess what was inside each other's heads. On the surface, Shujinko looked calm and resolved, but inside he was growing increasingly worried that his father would deny his request. "... I suppose it was only a matter of time before you asked me. You do have the right to know about your clan. Here, follow me,"

Letting out a relieved sigh, Shujinko followed Daichi to his office, a place so private and unsullied that both Shujinko and Nanami were both forbidden to enter without their father's consent. When Shujinko asked his father why he didn't want them to enter on their own, Daichi told him: _"My office is where I work, and my job is meant to be completed by me and me alone. The same way I don't meddle in your shinobi assignments, I ask you not to meddle with my business,"_ Shujinko had never felt a hundred percent satisfied by that answer, but he knew better than to get into a pointless argument with his dad, so he didn't bother to ask him again.

As soon as they entered the office, Daichi locked the door behind them. Without uttering a single word, the oldest of the Ozuma used a key to open a wardrobe filled with mostly papers and books, as well as other decorative objects. Before Shujinko could ask what he was doing, Daichi began taking out everything that was on top of the third shelve, placing what was inside on top of his polished desk.

At first, Shujinko thought maybe those were the clan archives, but upon taking a closer look, he realized the papers that Daichi was dropping on his desk were nothing but letters, contracts, assignments, and bills. In other words, a bunch of old paperwork that had little to nothing to do with the Ozuma clan. Once again, Shujinko remained silent.

Once everything from the third shelve was removed, Daichi gave his son a very, very serious look, even for his standards. "I know this goes without saying, but I will say it anyway: Do not, and I repeat, do not tell Nanami about this. She is too young to understand. I cannot stress this enough," he warned.

Shujinko gulped. "I promise, but you will eventually tell her, right?"

"... Eventually," Daichi replied. He then turned around, placed his hand inside the closet where he removed all of the paperwork and slowly began to push the back panel. The golden-eyed boy heard a 'click' sound. Daichi opened a small drawer from inside the closet, revealing a secret compartment. Shujinko's heartbeat increased and his pupils expanded as his father retrieved what was inside the secret compartment, which happened to be nothing more and nothing less than... a scroll.

That's it. Just a single scroll, nothing less, and nothing more. It wasn't even big like the one Jiraiya carried on his back.

Shujinko felt disheartened, and even a bit scammed. Really? That was everything his grandmother could gather from the clan archives? How much information could be written in one simple scroll? He had done Academy homework more extensive than that.

"So... Is that all?" Shujinko asked meekly, not wanting to offend his father.

Daichi shook his head. "Not quite. Kaa-san told me this scroll contains everything about our clan, but that it could only be opened by a member of the Ozuma clan. To be more specific, someone who has awakened the Karura Tensei. Your blood is the key to access the clan archives, she said. I cannot tell what she meant by that, at least not for certain,"

Taking the scroll from his father's hand, Shujinko stared at it extensively. If this truly contained all of the archives of his clan, then he had to find a way to gain access to it. He opened the scroll and found it to be empty, not a single kanji to be seen. Shujinko left the scroll open on the floor and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to come out with an answer.

'My blood is the key to access the clan archives... In that case... I might as well give it a shot,'

The older Ozuma raised an eyebrow as he saw his son grabbing a kunai. "What are you going to do?"

"I think I have an idea," Shujinko responded as he pressed his thumb against the edge of the blade, making a small cut. He then wiggled his thumb until a drop of blood landed on the blank scroll.

Nothing happened at first, and Shujinko started to think that maybe what he had just done was a mistake. But then, the scroll absorbed his blood, and the once blank paper was suddenly filled with symbols and designs made out of red ink. A big kanji was illustrated in the center of the scroll, and Shujinko recognized it right away.

"It worked!" Shujinko exclaimed, overwhelmed by joy. "Tou-san, this is a sealing scroll! It's used to... well, seal stuff inside. It makes carrying things way easier,"

"... So that was what my mother meant," Daichi said, visibly perplexed. "Your blood truly is the key to unlock our past,"

"It sure seems that way," he replied while putting a band-aid around his thumb. He didn't want to spoil any important documents with his blood by accident. Then, he placed his hand on the seal while his other hand raised his index and middle finger. "Let's see what we have here,"

As soon as he activated the seal, a magnificently-crafted chest made out of black wood appeared, making that classic POOF sound that was produced when something was unsealed. Shujinko touched the polished surface of the wooden chest with the tip of his fingers, and it felt as smooth as glass. The borders and edges of the chest were covered by a thin plaque made out of gold that only enhanced its beauty. The size of the chest itself was fairly small, however. It could be easily picked up with two hands.

But by far the most astounding ornament of the chest was a jewel placed in the spot where the lock was supposed to be. This circularly-shaped jewel was a yellow tourmaline that had the size of a clenched fist. The golden-eyed boy was left speechless by the sheer perfection of the jewel. "... Holy crap," he said, forgetting how much his father disliked hearing foul language.

But Daichi was so dazzled by what was in front of him that he didn't even bother to chastise his son. "... There is no doubt about it. That is the Kazemaru no Me..."

"Kazemaru no Me?" Shujinko repeated. "What's that?"

"That jewel is the Kazemaru no Me, the Eye of Kazemaru. When I first told you about the Karura Tensei, I mentioned the founder of the Ozuma clan, Ozuma Kazemaru. It is said that this jewel belonged to him, and according to the legends of our clan, only a direct descendant of Kazemaru can get in tune with it. This chest has been passed down from one generation to another for decades, and as the head of the clan, my father was its last owner... I never thought I would see it again,"

Shujinko blew a whistle. "Well, that's one heck of a family heirloom,". Selling that jewel would probably set them up for the rest of their lives, he thought. "I'm guessing the clan archives are somewhere inside," the Genin said as he put his hands on the chest. "Let me just..."

But as soon as he tried, he realized that the chest wasn't going to be easy to open. He applied all the strength he could muster, but the chest simply wouldn't budge. It was like trying to break open a padlock with his bare hands. Ignoring Daichi's warnings, Shujinko decided to try one last time, placing both his feet between the chest so that it wouldn't move and using his two hands to pull up that blasted thing. 'What's your problem?! Open up, damn it!'

SWOOOSH

Shujinko was so desperate to try and open the chest that he accidentally ended up throwing it over his head. The chest reached the ceiling, leaving a big dent on its surface. When gravity started to kick in, Shujinko was too slow to react and, gawking like an idiot, saw how the chest landed right on top of his head.

BAAM

"Oooooouuch! Son of a... That piece of... Oooouch!" Shujinko moaned in pain while he rubbed his head, a tear running down his cheek. The chest wasn't that heavy, but the jewel sure was solid, which was exactly what made contact with his head.

Daichi sighed and picked up the chest. It was obvious at this point that brute force wasn't going to help here. The only thing Daichi knew for sure was that Shujinko was the only person in the world able to open the chest. While Nanami also had the blood and the right genetics, she was still a little girl and she had yet to awaken the Karura Tensei, which according to Nyoko, was a requirement.

Upon taking a closer look, Daichi noticed something. There was a symbol inside the Eye of Kazemaru, and when he narrowed his eyes to see better, he identified what was inside. "Come here, son. I might have found something,"

"What is it?" Shujinko asked, still dealing with a lot of pain. He could already feel a lump growing.

Daichi showed him the gem. "Look at this. The kanji for nature energy is carved inside the Eye of Kazemaru. Perhaps it might be just for decoration, but it could also mean what we must do to open the chest,"

Shujinko forgot about his swollen head and focused on the matter at hand. His father was right. If he came close enough, he could easily see the kanji carved inside. But why? What did this gem have to do with Senjutsu?

'Come on, think... Think about what Nyoko-baa-san told tou-san. She told him only someone with the Karura Tensei could gain access to the archives... Tou-san said that, according to the legends, only a direct descendant of Kazemaru can get in tune with the jewel, whatever that means... Wait, if my grandfather was the head of the clan, then that means that he was a direct descendant of Kazemaru. Following his bloodline, that makes me a direct descendant of Kazemaru as well since I'm his grandson... But what do I have to do?' "Tou-san, when you said only direct descendants of Kazemaru can get in tune with the Eye of Kazemaru, what do you mean by that? Did you ever saw someone actually open this chest?"

Daichi took his time to go back and revisit his childhood memories. After a while, he nodded and faced his son. "... I have. When I was a child, I was forbidden to attend the clan's meetings. However, during one of those meetings, I decided to test my luck and tried to spy on my father. For a brief moment, I managed to catch a glimpse of their meeting. Although I was unable to hear what they were speaking about, I did watch my father place his open hand on the Eye of Kazemaru and the chest opened shortly after... That was all I could see before I had to leave in order to avoid getting caught,"

What Daichi didn't tell Shujinko was that, somehow, his father did notice his presence during the meeting, and once the gathering was over, Hotama had a "little talk" with his son and gave him a severe punishment. Daichi never dared to spy on the clans' meetings ever again.

"Really? He simply placed his hand and the chest opened up, just like that?" Shujinko furrowed his brow, giving Daichi a questioning look. He refused to believe the chest would open up by just placing his hand on the gem. It was far too easy considering that he had to use a drop of his blood just to activate the seal that contained the chest in the first place. 'Maybe it's a button,' he thought as he attempted to push the Eye of Kazemaru, but the jewel was heavily embedded in the chest. He was running out of ideas...

'Nature energy... Nature energy... Nature energy...'

A lightbulb magically appeared over his head as Shujinko snapped his fingers. "That's it! I think I got it!"

While his right hand was touching the jewel, Shujinko closed his eyes and raised his index and middle finger of his left hand, performing a standard shinobi hand seal. He took a deep breath and slowly began to gather as much energy as he could. It was true that he could enter Sage Mode instantly thanks to his Kekkei Genkai, but if he patiently waited long enough first, he could take in more nature energy, which resulted in more Senjutsu chakra for him to use.

He waited for five minutes straight until he felt he had enough. Then, he turned on that mental switch inside his head that triggered the Karura Tensei, but instead of keeping all of the gathered energy to himself, he redirected the energy through his body and transferred it into the Eye of Kazemaru.

Said jewel started to glow, much to Daichi's shock. Shujinko was too focused on sending nature energy to the gem that he didn't see the sudden glow, but he smirked nonetheless. It was hard to explain, but he could definitely feel his energy connecting with the gem, as if the two of them were in tune with each other. If he had to put it into words, it was like tasting the perfect tea, with all the right amount of ingredients and neither too cold or too hot. When he opened his eyes, he saw the chest was beginning to open, much to his utter delight. "It worked! It actually worked! I'm a genius!"

"After all these years..." Daichi whispered. The chest was fully open and the Eye of Kazemaru had stopped glowing. The inside of the chest was coated with blue velvet of the highest quality, the one that was sold only to lords and wealthy merchants. There were two objects inside. One of them was a large scroll and the other one was a shiny necklace.

"Woooooah," Of course, Shujinko ignored the scroll and went for the necklace instead. The necklace had the shape of a feather made out of solid gold, and it was the size of his pinky. "Tou-san, what's this? It looks so cool!"

"That necklace was worn by the elite warriors of our clan," Daichi replied, showing practically no interest in the necklace whatsoever. His eyes were fixed on the scroll inside the chest. "The feather of a hawk was... is, the symbol of our clan, and those who had proven themselves worthy of praise in the battlefield were given this necklace as a token of respect," Before Shujinko could even articulate his question, Daichi added something else. "And yes, you may keep it,"

Shujinko's face was contorted with surprise. "R-Really? I mean, it's not like I was gonna ask you if I could have it or anything like that, but if you insist... I guess I have no choice," he said with a normal facial expression while going 'HELL YEAH!' inside. The young Ozuma greedily accepted the gift and immediately put the necklace on, admiring its craftsmanship.

However, his admiration quickly died off as he watched his father staring at the thick scroll, the one that surely contained the archives of the Ozuma clan. It was like seeing a man who had finally found the treasure chest he had been looking for his entire life but was too afraid to go ahead and open it at the same time. Father and son nodded at each other, deciding it was time to finish what they started once and for all. Shujinko grabbed the scroll with utmost care and took out the golden ring that kept the scroll together and opened it.

Unlike the previous scroll, this one already had the seal on display, so there was no need for him to use his blood. The seal was bigger than the ones Shujinko had seen before, but other than that it was pretty standard. He left the open scroll on the floor and gave his dad one final look. "Are you ready?"

When Daichi nodded, Shujinko took a deep breath and activated the seal by pumping a bit of chakra into it...

POOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOFFFFFFFFFFF

What neither of them gave much thought about was the fact that, when Nyoko sealed the clan archives before they were wiped out, she literally sealed ALL of it.

That was why, in a blink of an eye, Shujinko and Daichi found themselves lying on top of a huge pile of books and scrolls of all sizes. There were so many of them you could barely see the floor of the room. There were also paintings, poems, and small objects like figurines and sheathed daggers and what not. Daichi's office, once a tidy and impeccable little workplace, was now looking like an attic after an earthquake.

Shujinko blinked three times consecutively, and after a minute of dead silence…

"… Yatta! Found 'em!"

* * *

"This is insane! Just look at all this!" Shujinko exclaimed in delight. In less than ten minutes, he went from barely having any knowledge of his clan to having all the information possible spread across the room. He came looking for a coin and ended up finding the whole treasure chest.

"Unbelievable…" Daichi made no effort to hide his shock. His calm and composed demeanor was long gone, and the more he looked around, the more amazed he became. He was, in a way, sitting on top of the entire legacy of the Ozuma clan.

Shujinko carefully moved away from where he was, trying his best not to step on any of the ancient books and scrolls he had just unsealed. His father probably wouldn't find it humorous if he accidentally ruined a piece of the only source of information that was left from their clan. Once he reached a corner of the room where there was actual floor to stand on, Shujinko crouched and began going through the clan archives, one scroll after the other. While he was very eager to learn more about the history of his clan, the young Genin had one specific target: He wanted to get his hands on a scroll or a book that contained techniques developed by his predecessors, techniques that he would've been taught anyways if the Ozuma clan hadn't been nearly wiped out.

Unfortunately, there was no way of telling which scroll contained what he was looking for. The books had their titles on the front cover, but none of them seemed to have anything jutsu-related as they were mostly history volumes and things like that, and there were quite a few of them.

Daichi interrupted his son's train of thought. "I suppose we cannot leave them just like that. We should start picking them up and arrange them according to their subject, wouldn't you say?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure. That sounds great," Shujinko replied absentmindedly as he began picking up random scrolls, hoping to find what he was looking for as soon as possible. 'What am I even worrying about? There must be tons of techniques here. I bet I'll find something useful in less than ten minutes,'

…

* * *

After one and a half hour of picking up books and scrolls and organizing them into different categories, Daichi's office was finally clean and tidy again, this time with way more stuff lying around than before. Since there wasn't enough furniture to keep everything under lock and key, most of the clan archives were lying on the floor, one book on top of another, resulting in several piles of documents that were separated from one another according to what kind of information contained.

As for Shujinko, after checking, doublechecking, and triplechecking every single book and scroll, his search concluded with a total amount of…

… cero techniques. Not a single jutsu was to be found in the clan archives. There were maps, diaries, short biographies, paintings, but no techniques whatsoever.

Shujinko wanted to cry out of despair. Why? Why did Kami enjoy making his life miserable? Why were there no techniques in the clan archives? If this was all of the information his grandmother managed to seal, then surely some Ninjutsu had to be there. Clan techniques were one of the most valued and representative aspects of every clan, and Nyoko most definitely would've wanted them to be passed down to the next generation of the Ozuma clan. Were they sealed inside another scroll? If that was the case, in what scroll? He had already gone through all of them, and Daichi would've let him know if he stumbled across something worthy of his attention.

"Such a vast amount of information should not be this exposed, but I suppose there is nothing we can do about it in the meantime," Daichi said as he finished reading a scroll that contained information regarding the first descendants of the Ozuma clan. "I happen to know a very efficient home designer that can help us with this. I will contact him immediately so that we can begin with the preparations right away,"

"Yeah, sure, that sounds great," his son replied, trying not to sound disappointed and utterly failing at doing so. 'This was such a waste of time,'

Now, Shujinko didn't fully believe that. Of course, it was a great thing to have all of this information at hand, but if there were no techniques that he could learn and improve his abilities, then it really didn't feel all that great. Having no way of learning any clan techniques didn't affect Daichi or Masumi since they were civilians at heart and were only part of a shinobi clan on paper, but it certainly affected both him and Nanami, his little sister. He was already a Genin and Nanami was on her way to becoming one, so not having clan techniques to help them grow as ninjas was a real pity.

Daichi didn't seem to notice his son's sudden uninterest in the clan archives and continued rambling on about Kami knows what. However, during the middle of his sentence, Daichi suddenly stopped as he caught sight of something. "... Is that a scroll over there?"

"Hmnh?" Shujinko looked at where his father was pointing. He immediately saw what Daichi was talking about. There was a scroll under one of Daichi's pieces of furniture. It most likely rolled down there when Shujinko summoned the clan archives. With renewed curiosity, the Genin crawled towards the furniture and stuck his hand out until he reached the scroll. Once he got it, he noticed it was rather short, so it couldn't contain that much information.

KNOCK KNOCK

Both father and son were slightly startled by the sound of the entrance door being knocked. Daichi stood up straight and looked at his son. "It must be your mother. I will go get the door, and you leave the scroll were it belongs. Remember to lock the door once you leave. Hurry," Once Daichi left his office, Shujinko opened the scroll to check what was written on it.

Upon reading the first sentences, his heart skipped a beat and his eyes grew wide. 'This is...'

Without thinking twice about it, the young Ozuma closed the scroll and placed it inside his pocket. His heartbeats became twice as fast and twice as hard, and a rush of adrenaline invaded his body. Once he locked the office door as Daichi told him to do and ran up the stairs as if his life depended on it, making loud noises that earned him a shout of warning from Masumi, to which he replied with a quick 'Sorry!' before slamming his bedroom door closed.

Gasping for breath, Shujinko took out the scroll and began reading its content.

 _Kazekiri:_

 _By focusing our chakra in our hand, and transforming it using our wind element, the result is a wind-based chakra blade. This blade has the capacity to slash or pierce through any known substance, including metal. The power of this jutsu and its effectiveness comes from the user's chakra control and mastery over Fuuton. Combined with the abilities granted by the Karura Tensei, this jutsu is incredibly dangerous in close-combat situations. A skilled user of the Kazekiri is able to increase its length, granting the jutsu a longer reach._

 _Unlike many others, the chakra cost of this jutsu does not_ depend _on how many times it is used, but rather for how long it remains active. The Kazekiri is not meant to be used for a prolonged period of time, for the user must constantly pour chakra into it in order to maintain the technique. If the Kazekiri remains active for far too long, the user will soon experience chakra exhaustion._

 _The hand signs for this jutsu are Dog, Rat, Bird, Horse,_ and _Snake._

The text included a few drawings that illustrated the Kazekiri. If done correctly, the Kazekiri looked like an energy field that covered the user's hand from the tip of his fingers to half his forearm, surrounded by wind chakra shaped like a blade. The scroll also contained another technique called Fuuton: Fuuryuudan no Jutsu, which created a powerful dragon out of wind used to strike down one or several targets, dealing a tremendous amount of damage. Shujinko was delighted at first, but as he continued reading, he realized there was no way he could learn such a technique as a Genin. The Fuuryuudan no Jutsu required far more chakra than what he had, and on top of that, there were a total of thirty-five hand signs he had to weave if he wanted to try it out.

'Yup, the Fuuryuudan no Jutsu is totally out of my reach for the time being. If I get tired after creating one shadow clone, I don't even want to know what this jutsu would do to me... The Kazekiri, on the other hand...'

The Kazekiri sounded exactly like what he needed, a close-range wind attack designed to cut anything standing in his way. He remembered how powerful and mighty Sasuke looked when he pulled out the Chidori against Gaara. He needed a weapon like that if he wanted to stand out and take the lead away from Naruto and Sasuke. If he could make this jutsu work, he would become far more of a threat to anyone he fought against.

He had what he needed to learn the Kazekiri. Now, it was up to him to go outside and put in the work. 'It's not gonna be easy. I don't know how much time it'll take me to get this jutsu right, and maybe I'm taking on a challenge that's bigger than what I am... but that never stopped either of them from getting stronger, and I refuse to be any different. This is my chance to prove myself and to prove to Kakashi-sensei I wasn't bluffing when I told him what my new goal was,'

Almost without thinking about it, Shujinko grabbed his necklace and stared at the golden feather. Years ago, only the strongest members of his clan had the right to wear one of these amulets, and they acquired that right by showing what they were made of in the battlefield like true warriors. What about him? What had he done to deserve that necklace? Even if he didn't know for certain just how powerful his predecessors were, there was no doubt in his mind that his achievements were not good enough... He was not good enough to show off that necklace.

Letting out a weary sigh, the Genin made a decision. He took off the necklace, opened his desk drawer, and stored it inside along with the rest of his personal stuff. As he did so, he promised himself one thing.

'I won't use that necklace until I master the Kazekiri. That'll be my test. Only then I'll be worthy,'

Just like every human being, Shujinko had his own flaws, but there was one thing no one could criticize him for: Shujinko never, ever took what he had for granted. He didn't become who he was by standing there waiting for things to go his way. Deep inside, the golden-eyed boy knew he couldn't wear that necklace today and feel proud at the same time. He wanted... No, he needed to earn the right to use it, even if he could very well avoid going through all the trouble of learning the Kazekiri and just put it on like it was nothing.

But that was not who he was. Feeling more determined than ever, Shujinko opened his left palm and punched it with his right hand, making a smacking sound. "Alright, let's do this!"

* * *

Aaaaaaand that was the end of chapter 36.

I would like to start out by addressing my tardiness. I had a lot of work to do. There, that's it.

Moving on, there are some things that I would like to clarify:

1) The Eye of Kazemaru (Kazemaru no Me) is simply a jewel that acts as a lock. It doesn't have any sort of special power beyond that... Well, at least not in this story. I've started working on a side project in which the Eye of Kazemaru plays a huge role. It's a crossover that I've wanted to do for a while, and I'm very ambitious about it. I'll probably start uploading it once this story (part 1) is over.

2) Both the Kazekiri and the Fuuryuudan no Jutsu are techniques invented by me. Well, to be fair, the Kazekiri no Jutsu already exists, but it's only been used once as far as I can tell, and it doesn't work the way I described my Kazekiri (Wind Blade), so I'ma take the liberty of claiming this Kazekiri as the one and only there is. If you want a more graphic description, picture Goku Black's (From Dragon Ball Super) Violent Fierce God Slicer technique, but slightly smaller and replace the pink energy with wind and a bit of silver energy over the edges. That's the best description I can come up with to explain the Kazekiri.

As for the Fuuryuudan no Jutsu (Wind Dragon Jutsu), it's pretty much the same as the Suiryuudan no Jutsu (Water Dragon Jutsu), but with wind instead of water. If you can make a dragon out of water, why not out of wind? Wind is literally almost everywhere, so it can't be that crazy, right?

Anyways, that's it for today. The next chapters will be about Shujinko trying to master the Kazekiri and the struggles that come with such a technique. He'll also learn other things regarding chakra nature and chakra transformation, but I don't want to give you guys a lot of details. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I wish all of you a wonderful day.

Don't forget to Review, Favorite & Follow.

Ja ne!


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